Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed
by Tymestalker
Summary: Life on Destiny Island has returned to some kind of normal.  But while awaiting the King and his warriors, a new enemy strikes directly at our three heroes.  Can they survive what is to come?
1. Prologue

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Prologue: Plots and Plans**

**The Edge of Existence**

Teren trudged through the stone halls of the castle, his eyes focused straight ahead as he forced himself forward with each step. It was missions like this last one that made him need more than one strong drink. However, his Master would not allow for delays in delivering his report. He'd found the Stone, and that would please his Master to no end. A few wounds was nothing compared to that.

The echo of his boots rang all around, the only sound in this long-dead castle. The only inhabitant was Teren himself, ever since his Master had been sealed away by the self-proclaimed Ansem the Wise some time ago. If it hadn't been for Teren and his loyalty to Master Shade and his cause, Ansem would have succeeded in his exiling. But Teren had followed, searching for his Master until he'd actually found him again. After months and months of work, he'd found this realm. More time was required for him to find a way to communicate with Shade's trapped soul. Ever since he'd discovered how, Teren had been working for Master Shade, enabling his plans to return to the physical plane.

Pain and aches filled his mind, giving him no choice. He had to stop, catch his breath and allow his vision to realign. He stopped, leaning on the ledge of the window, staring out along the horizon. Compared to the stale, unchanging blue during the day that most worlds had, the vibrant pinks, reds and yellows of the sky here in this realm were very entrancing. He especially loved how they flowed along the sky. Once Master Shade's plan was completed, he hoped people would return and make this plane a thriving place again. Despite what he might claim, he was lonely here.

Teren ground his nails along the ledge, angry with himself. Master Shade's plan had nearly failed because of him. He had been careless and nearly been killed as he searched for the Stone. But he had been successful, and that would be all that would matter now. He looked down at his hand, seeing the fresh blood from the damage he had done to himself. It was a start, but he could punish himself for his carelessness later. Master Shade was waiting for him. He sucked in his breath and endured the pain as he hobbled to the throne room.

He entered the vast room, ignoring the missing ceiling as it always made him feel queasy. He saw the 'form' of his master on the throne, the outline of the shadow shifting, flowing, and fading in and out. "You are late. It should not have taken you that long from when you arrived. Did you get it?" Shade said, his voice reverberating around the room.

"Yes, Master. My apologies Master. The Nemeta Stone is yours." He kneeled, sweeping his cloak away from his body, and held out the object. It was a six-sided artifact with obscure markings along the outside and face of the stone. The language it was marked with was one Teren was not familiar with, but Shade seemed to think this piece was very important.

"Excellent, child. Your service has been noted and will be rewarded when my time has come." The Stone floated up out of Teren's hands and shot over in front of Shade. If Teren could have seen Shade's face, he'd have sworn he was smiling. The form's piercing green eyes glittered as though they hid some joke. "I have been watching our unwitting helpers again. They have done quite well. They have destroyed Xehanort and his mad plan to collect the hearts. I even got to watch Ansem destroy himself. It was delicious. Your misdirection has done quite well."

Teren nodded, feeling some measure of pride. "Yes, Master. Thank you Master." When he looked up, however, he was unsure.

"Do you doubt my plan, young servant?" The shadows around Shade rippled.

"I just...I do not understand why you have not had me collect the Keyblade Master for you yet."

"It is simple." Shade's form leaned forward, the representation of his body nearly fading out completely, "He is not ready." Teren was confused and Shade shook his head. "I don't expect you to understand yet. Just trust me when I say that I need him to grow before I can use him. And he is doing my work for me, so it is all for the best."

"I guess Master, I just wonder if he will not become too strong for you. I could not bear losing you again."

"Do not worry Teren. I have planned for that. When the time comes, I will deal with Sora and his friends myself. And his defeat will be courtesy of Ansem the Wise." Shade leaned back, his 'body' shuddering with laughter. Teren looked up, his dark brown eyes curious. He'd never seen Master Shade so happy. Not since his imprisonment.

He waited to see if Master Shade would reveal more of his plan, but he never did to Teren. Not until it was time for his next task. "I will leave then, Master, so you can study the artifact." He stood, grimacing in pain, bowing as he backed away.

"Teren, wait. I have another task for you."

Teren stopped, wincing as he did. He had hoped for a day of rest. "Yes Master?"

"It would seem that the King is moving before I am ready for him. He is heading for the Keyblade Master as we speak, and our newest plan will be too late if he arrives."

Teren blinked, feeling a bit of fury rise in him. The King was always interfering with Master Shade. Like Ansem the Wise, King Mickey was a major threat to the plans, and dangerous. They would need to be cautious with how they moved against him when the time was right. "What would you have me do, Master?" Rest would have to wait. His life was Shade's to use and if his sacrifice would fit his Master's plan, he would gladly give it.

Shade leaned back, grinning. "Delay them."

Teren nodded, not asking how Shade wanted him to do so. That was his job to figure out. He bowed again. "It will be done, Master. If I may?" Shade waved him away, gripping the Nemeta Stone and drawing it into his plane of exile. Teren turned and left, hurrying to the ship. He had Heartless to find. After all, what was a trip on a gummi ship without a little Heartless interference? If he timed it right, the Keyblade Master would be too entrenched in their plot for even the King to pull him out.


	2. Chapter 1

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 1: The coming storm**

**Destiny Islands**

The sun was setting as Riku worked on his technique. The blade of his Keyblade gleamed as he held it up, just before moving into another fight routine. After returning to the islands and receiving the note from King Mickey in the bottle, Riku had taken to spending many afternoons trying to improve himself. The message Kairi had brought them mentioned an approaching evil and the King had promised to come and bring them to Disney Castle. That had been weeks ago and there was still no sign of their friends.

The blade sliced through thin air and Riku finally slowed the blade, the Way to Dawn vanishing until Riku had need of it again. He ran an arm along his forehead, wiping the sweat off. He was drenched in it. He must have been practicing longer than he thought. He glanced up as the light changed. Clouds were forming in the distance, dark and grey, and they were covering up the sun. "A storm..." he said, and somehow he felt that evil would follow. He was still tuned to the darkness, even now.

"Riku!" Sora's cheery voice caught his attention as his friend ran across the wooden bridge to the island. He slowed up as he neared and his blue eyes asked the question in his head long before the words reached his lips. "Any sign of them?"

"None." Riku sat on the trunk of the tree. "Wherever they are, I think they're in trouble."

Sora's face fell. Riku could relate. Sora's bond of friendship with Donald and Goofy had grown as strong as his own bond with the King. As strong as the one the three friends shared. Sora quickly covered it up, confidence showing on his face and he brought his hands behind his head, leaning back a little. "They'll be alright. They're too strong to lose to the darkness." He then leapt up to join him, sitting beside him.

Riku nodded, though his face was grim. "Of course. They have their light." His greenish-blue eyes darkened. "I thought I was stronger than it though, remember? In the end, it consumed me." He clenched a fist, anger filling him again, but this time directed at himself.

"C'mon Riku. I thought you had let that go."

"Sorry Sora. I'm not like you. I can't just forget and go on like nothing's wrong. My past is a part of me."

"That's not what I mean!" Sora said, his arm sweeping out to emphasize his statement.

"No one's asking you to forget Riku." A female voice joined the conversation. Both boys looked up to see Kairi walking onto the island from the bridge. "To forget the past would be foolish, as your past makes up what you are now." The redhead walked to the tree and joined the boys on the log. "However, you can still forgive yourself. You were there when it mattered most, and you fought to protect worlds, not destroy them."

"Kairi's right," Sora said, grinning ear to ear. "You aren't controlled by darkness anymore Riku. You found your own light."

Riku gave an exasperated laugh. "Alright, alright," he said, grinning himself, "I'll never win if you two gang up on me."

Kairi smiled, her blue eyes alight with renewed fervor. "You better believe it. I haven't been working with my own Keyblade for nothing, you know. Next time you two go to save the worlds, I'm coming too."

Riku stood up. "You'll need to work harder Kairi." He turned, a teasing smile growing across his face. "After all, you can't even beat Selphie yet."

He began to run, hearing Kairi cry out in anger as she gave chase. The smile on Riku's face was genuine. It was great to be back with his friends. Whatever darkness did come, as long as he was with them, they could handle it. Together.

* * *

The storm rolled in, lightning, thunder and high winds mixing with the rain. Kairi stared out the window, troubled. Riku's comment had cut her, even though he hadn't meant it to hurt. She knew her skill with the Keyblade was nowhere near Sora and Riku's. She'd enjoyed watching her friends play at fighting when they grew up. Wakka, Tidus, Sora, Riku. Even Selphie had joined in, fighting with her jump rope like a pair of nunchuks. Kairi had enjoyed the games, but she'd never thought she'd want to join in.

She sighed, slipping off the bed. What was frustrating to her was that she felt she NEEDED to be better. She couldn't help but feel that it was important in the coming battle that she improve, and fast.

She saw herself in the full-length mirror and she approached it. She brushed a lock of her reddish-brown hair out of her face and sighed. "Pull yourself together Kairi. Worrying won't do you any good in a fight." She just didn't want Sora or Riku to fret about her in a fight. She wanted, no, she needed, to prove that she wasn't a liability. For a moment, she closed her eyes, thinking of the Nobody that was part of her. "Namine, what would you do?" No answer came, and she felt foolish for asking. Namine and Roxas had returned to where they belonged and, ever since they'd joined at the top of the castle of the World That Never Was, she'd never felt more from her except a small feeling now and then when she was near Sora.

She started to head downstairs when she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She stopped, turning back to the window. She looked around outside, trying to find what she'd seen. She was about to give it up as a figment of her imagination when lightning flashed and she saw several figures on the beach. She inhaled sharply. The forms were definitely not human. _Heartless, or maybe Nobodies._ Either way, it meant trouble in their home once again. There were too many for her to take on herself. She needed to warn the others.

Kairi rushed to her door, throwing it open and froze. There were several crashes downstairs and Kairi crept along the hall until she reached the head of the stairs. Craning her head over the railing, and feeling a deep fear in her gut, she tried to see what was going on.

There were several shadowy beings in the living room. _Heartless._ Kairi thought, a chill of fear running through her. She willed her Keyblade into existence, holding it as though she were clutching a lifeline. _This is what you've been practicing for Kairi. You can do this._ She glanced at her Keyblade, at the colors along the shaft and the flower key at the end of the blade. _Help me succeed,_ she thought at the blade. She then looked around for the adults that were here, but there was no sign of them. That worried her a lot. She stepped onto the first step, wanting to get the drop on these intruders.

"Where is she?" A female voice cut the silence like a knife through butter. Kairi stepped back into the alcove. A woman dressed in blue and silver armor walked into view. Her hair looked like it was on fire and she stormed around, sending Heartless scurrying out of her way. "The girl is supposed to be here. We have to find her and fast, before she joins the others. We need all three before they can fight back." Kairi nearly cried out in surprise. They were here...for her? No, not just her. Three. _Sora and Riku!_ It had to be. She crept quietly back to her room, her Keyblade vanishing again until she needed it, and shut the door, barring it as best she could.

She pulled herself up to her window and tried not to think about how high she was. She simply acted, letting gravity do its work, quickly dropping to the beach below. Wind whipped at her immediately and she nearly fell. She made her way down to water's edge, using the lightning as her guide. Sora's house was closer and so she made her way slowly. Even in the heavy rain, she could make out the forms of the shadow creatures further up the beach. She crept along, hoping they'd ignore her. She tried to stay quiet but she was very nervous. Her footsteps sounded loud with every step, making her worry that each sound was going to alert the creatures to her presence, even over the roar of the ocean, the pounding of the rain and the howling of the wind. Fear was making her a bit unreasonable.

She was within sight of Sora's house when something wrapped along her arm. Kairi squealed and pulled out of its grasp, falling roughly on her ass. She nearly fainted in shock at what she saw. The figure coming up out of the water looked like a giant pink octopus with a strange symbol she didn't recognize. The darkness didn't let her make too much out, but the red glowing eyes were very disturbing. It sent out another tentacle but this time Kairi was ready. She leapt back, her Keyblade appearing in her hand. _Fight your fear Kairi. It's you or it._ She slashed at the creature, slicing off the tentacle. The creature screeched in pain and lunged for her. She spun out of its grasp, swinging the blade as she came behind it. The creature cried out and dissolved in front of her. Unfortunately, its cry alerted the others.

Kairi put her Keyblade away, dashing for Sora's house. She heard the creatures behind her, calling after her in an inhuman way as they gave chase. _C'mon...Just a little further..._ It was not to be, however. One of the creatures leapt over her, landing in her path. Kairi stopped in her tracks. More closed in, surrounding her. Up close, they were strange looking creatures, with tendrils coming out the tops of their heads. They had long shadowy claws and almost looked humanoid, even if all they seemed to be made of was a cloud-like substance. And each of them had those same red eyes and symbol on their chest. Kairi swung out her arm, the Keyblade reappearing in a flash of light. "If you want a fight, you're gonna get one." She hoped she sounded more convincing than she felt.

One of the shadows leapt at her. Kairi dodged left, swinging her Keyblade at it as it passed. It missed by inches, and another slashed at her. Pain laced along her arm and she jumped back, crying out in pain. Another approached quickly, thinking she might be vulnerable, and learned the hard way not to underestimate her. _One down._ She spun, trying to keep an eye on those around her and keep them from doing serious harm to her. She dodged an attack, rolled away from another and destroyed a second one. This was taking more effort than she could afford to spare right now and she was still not used to full combat on her own. She needed to end this quickly, or she'd be done for.

Two more were destroyed as she moved smoothly between their attacks. Confidence filled her as she stared at the remaining creations. She could do this. Riku and Sora had taught her well. She dodged, spun and ducked, slashing again and missing. Unfortunately that miss cost Kairi her balance. One swung at her and her attempt to dodge left her wide open. Something hard slammed into her back and soon she had a mouth full of sand. She coughed, pushing herself to her knees, ready to get back in the fight. She looked up and time seemed to slow to a crawl as one of these new horrors leapt at her. Its body came at her as she tried to bring up her blade to defend against its extended claws. She was going to be too slow and it was too late to dodge away.

Suddenly, the creature exploded in a cloud of darkness as a large blue and white ball rebounded off it and sailed back to where it had come from. Wakka leapt, catching the ball as two figures leapt to either side of her. Tidus slashed at one with his sword as Selphie pulled Kairi to her feet, a pair of real nunchuks in her other hand. "Need a hand?"

Kairi smiled a little, though it irked her inside that she'd needed help again. "What are you three doing here?" she asked as Wakka ran up.

"Riku brought us out to help. Said there were too many for him to handle alone. Never thought I'd hear him admit to that," Tidus said with a smirk, watching the creatures move just out of range. "We went to check on you but no one was home and the place was ransacked."

"We were headin' to check on Sora since we figured you might have come here when we heard ya scream. Good thing we got here when we did, ya?" Wakka spun the blitzball in his hand, a serious look on his face.

"Yeah…" Kairi grimaced a little at the thought, irritation flooding her. She clamped down on those emotions like a vice. There was no time for that now. "Where's Riku?" Kairi looked around for the silver-haired boy.

"He asked us to help you out after he heard a ruckus in Sora's place. Then he ran inside. He wanted you to follow him in while we handled things out here." Selphie said. Her face turned grim as several more of the creatures appeared out of the shadows.

"Are you sure you guys can handle this?" Kairi asked. She was worried about Riku and Sora, but she didn't want to abandon her friends either if they needed her help.

Tidus flashed her a thumbs up. "Don't worry, Kairi. We can handle it. You go help Riku. We'll clear you a path."

Kairi looked at the three, and a genuine smile lit up her face in the darkness. "Thank you so much, all of you." Selphie smiled back, giving her friend a quick hug and then Kairi was running. Tidus and Selphie took out one to either side of her, while she destroyed the one directly in front. Another leapt at her, but Wakka threw his blitzball at it and it disintegrated. After that, Kairi was on her own, but she only needed to destroy one more before she was through Sora's door.

She spotted Riku immediately, dealing with a large group of these shadows. Instinct took over for Kairi as she leapt in to help him. Her world had shrunken to the fight itself. Her perception was movement and it only distinguished between friend and foe. It was a strange feeling for Kairi, but a necessary one. All she knew was that she needed to help Riku so they could find Sora quickly. She had a nagging feeling that if they didn't hurry; something awful would happen to him.

Soon enough, the room was cleared. Kairi was panting from exertion, leaning on a table with one hand, the Keyblade dangling from the other. Riku himself was breathing hard, his eyes cold and hard as he looked around. "No sign of Sora."

"Upstairs...maybe?" Kairi looked at him, worried about him. He looked really upset.

"Possibly. I see your hard work has paid off. You fought well." A smile slowly crept onto his face. "This time, we rescue him."

Kairi gave a wry grin. "Been waiting for that moment, huh?"

"You know me. I need to rub his face in it from time to time." He looked down at his blade, then at Kairi. "I don't think these are Heartless. The way they move and fight, and those eyes. These are something new." Shuffling sounds came from upstairs before Kairi could respond and Riku's face became hard. He motioned upstairs and Kairi nodded. "Time to pay back the piper."

* * *

Riku took the point as they headed up the stairs. It wasn't that he didn't trust Kairi's skill. It was showing a marked improvement. But if anything was going to attack them when they got upstairs, he wanted it to be him. He didn't want anything to happen to her. He had sought after her when she had disappeared. He had joined with the darkness to get her back. In the end, all he could do was hold back the darkness to let her escape with Sora. He had finally accepted that. It hadn't been until he met the King that he'd realized his true path. The path that walked both darkness and light. In a way, he complimented Sora well with this, and now with Kairi, the three of them were a strong team.

Anger coursed through him as he neared the top of the stairs. _Why can't they leave my home alone? Why must they destroy it again, after I just got back?_ His blade trembled with his rage, vibrating almost violently because of it. He had to squash his emotions down, letting his anger smolder as he neared Sora's room. There was a sound of a fight inside and Riku tried the door. It wouldn't open. Riku simply backed up a step and kicked. The door splintered and swung open.

The room was crawling with Shadows and Soldiers. Sora was fighting them off, but there were too many for him to handle alone. _Heartless too? This just gets better and better. _Riku charged into the room, The Way to Dawn cleaving through the darklings with ease. He sensed Kairi join in as well and the three friends began dispatching them as soon as they popped up. Riku allowed the feel of battle to envelop him, enjoying the carnage. A part of him was glad this had happened. He had hated the wait. He wanted something, anything to happen. Waiting had just made him restless. When the last Soldier was destroyed, he fought to quell the rage and anticipation of battle. It was always harder for him since he accepted that part of himself. He needed to calm himself and focus.

"Riku! Kairi! You guys are okay." Sora's cheery voice cut through the dark part of himself. It was one of the best cures for his battle mode.

Riku smiled. "You were worried? Unlike you, I can handle these things myself."

"Yeah, but you needed me to save you in the end." Sora was all smiles though. Riku shook his head. Trust Sora to be cheerful in the direst of situations.

"Tidus and the gang are mopping up outside." He turned to Kairi, making sure she was okay. She nodded at him from the doorway as she leaned against the frame, a smile breaking out on her face too. He shook his head. "You two are incredible..." He began to laugh. Something just seemed very funny about all of this. Sora and Kairi joined in.

Sora's laugh cut off suddenly and Riku looked up in time to see a grey-haired man in red and silver armor turn Sora around and stab him in the right eye with a small silver blade. "SORA!" Kairi cried as she and Riku tried to get to him. The man raised a hand off Sora and directed it at the two. A gust of wind rose up and threw them back against the wall. Riku got up faster than Kairi, ignoring the pain in his back. He needed to get to Sora. He might be dying.

Sora was fidgeting a little but he wasn't bleeding. Instead, the blade that had entered his eye had created a small black void that drowned out the vibrant blue and the blade was pulsing steadily. "It's working. It's working!" the man said.

Riku stepped toward him. "Let him go or you'll regret it."

"No! Not when I'm so close!" He turned, emerald eyes dancing with delight. "You should worry more about yourself...or your girl." Riku's eyes went wide as Kairi's scream pierced his soul.

He spun, seeing a woman in the same armor design, only red instead of blue. Her own silver blade was piercing Kairi's left eye, the same black void there. Kairi was making strange strangling noises as her body twitched once, fear evident on her face. Riku spun back and forth, trying to decide whom to run to first. Finally, he turned toward Kairi. Ice blades shot up from the floor to the ceiling as he closed in on the woman, cutting him off from getting to her or back to Sora. He swung The Way to Dawn, scraping the blade along the ice, but it did not dent the obstacles. He focused inward, calling forth some magic and let loose a fire spell to try and melt the blades, but it had no effect on it. "Arrrghh!" he cried out, slamming his fist into the ice. "Kairi! Sora!"

Riku stood in the center of the ring of ice, feeling helpless to stop this. "Oh Maris, I can feel it coming. Soon we'll be complete my love," the grey-haired man said, his whole body trembling.

"Oh no you don't!" a voice cried out from nowhere and suddenly the room was filled with a blinding burst of white light. Riku had to shield his eyes from the light and a shattering sound reverberated in his ears. The light subsided and Riku tried to blink the spots out of his eyes. When his vision did clear, he was shocked at what he saw. Standing between Sora and the man in the red armor was a boy with honey-blonde hair. He wore a white vest that was open down the center and black clothing underneath, shirt and pants. He held a Keyblade in each hand.

Riku recognized Sora's Nobody almost immediately. _What is Roxas doing here?_ Riku wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth right now. He turned, looking at the one called Maris. She was looking at Kairi, who was now lying on the floor, unconscious like Sora was. Riku wasn't going to give the shocked woman a chance to try whatever she'd been doing again as he leapt forward, slicing at her. Maris dodged back, her blade slashing at him. Riku met the attack with a parry of his own, landing next to Kairi.

Maris spared the grey-haired man a quick glance. "Restin! It stopped working. What happened?"

"I don't know." Restin called back, a larger black blade appearing in his free hand. "Maybe we need more time with them."

"You aren't gonna get it," Roxas cried, his blades clashing with Restin's.

Riku spared a glance at Roxas, but as he turned back he was surprised as a humongous fist came from the hall and caught him in the face. The force of the blow knocked Riku into the center of the room. He tasted blood and checked his lip, seeing it had been split. He looked up as an enormous man stepped into the room, dressed in the same style armor, but this one had yellow instead. His whole body looked to be made of muscle. "We have company," he said, his voice rumbling. "We need to leave. Now."

Riku watched as he moved to grab Kairi. He dashed toward Kairi, but Maris got in the way. "Tomas!" she yelled. "Take the girl and go!"

Riku fought hard with Maris, trying to get past her and save Kairi. The big man lifted her limp body up over his shoulder and his body shimmered, then vanished. Maris knocked Riku back on his ass and she hurried over toward Roxas, who was busy trying to protect Sora. Footsteps were running towards them as Riku got back to his feet. More reinforcements might be coming. "Roxas! Grab Sora!"

Roxas turned, but at that moment Restin hit him with a burst of wind. It flung Roxas onto Sora's bed. The two intruders grabbed Sora's unconscious form as Mickey, Donald and Goofy ran into the room. "Restin, stop!" Mickey yelled.

"You're too late, Your Majesty!" The title was spoken as an insult. Mickey tried to stop them, but before he could get there, Maris and Restin teleported out with Sora, Restin's laugh echoing in Riku's ears as they got away.


	3. Chapter 2

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 2: Paths are Set **

**Destiny Islands**

Roxas sighed, his hand going to his head as he tried to blink the stars away. He tried to remember just which member of the Organization had cleaned his clock this time. He needed to know who he owed a beating to later. It wasn't until he opened his eyes and realized the room didn't look at all familiar that he understood where he was. The Organization was dead. He had merged with Sora. And then…he vaguely remembered Sora calling out, in trouble, and then the rush of being again.

He sat up quickly, regretting it as soon as he did. "Sora!" He looked around, seeing Riku, the King, and his men, but of his other half there was no sign. He cursed quietly under his breath and sat up, but a hand came down on his shoulder.

"Hey, relax there. You took a whale of a header inta the wall."

Roxas looked up into Goofy's eyes and nodded, still trying to blink away the stars. "Where's Sora? And Kairi?"

"Gone," Riku said coldly. "Whoever they were, they took them and we have no idea where."

"Aww, come on Riku. We'll find them," Mickey said, even though he looked worried. "We just gotta search."

"And we need to get Kairi back," Roxas said, standing up.

"Yeah, because you wouldn't care if Sora was left behind," Riku said venomously.

"Riku!" Donald cried in astonishment.

"What are you implying?" Roxas got up in Riku's face.

"I'm saying you don't care what happens to my friend! Now that you have a life again, you have no reason to want him back here!"

Roxas snarled and drew his Keyblade, Riku doing the same. Both boys stared each other down. "Hey." Donald said, reaching up to grab Roxas' arm.

"Now Riku, no need…" Riku brushed Goofy away. The two boys rushed in, swinging the Keyblades at each other and there was a loud clang.

The King had stepped between the two, his own Keyblades holding off theirs, the metal grinding on metal as both tried to force past him. "We don't have time for this," Mickey said, anger radiating off him. He knocked both combatants back. "You two want to keep fighting while the real enemy is getting away?"

Roxas opened his mouth to argue his case, but a moan behind one of the knocked-over bookshelves caught his attention. Both he and Riku rushed toward the female voice, and Roxas was overjoyed to see Namine lying there. Roxas knew he was tied with the blond Nobody witch, just as Sora was bound to Kairi. Each boy reached out a hand, helping the girl to her feet. Roxas was not surprised to see her wearing the same outfit he'd met her in, a white nightgown, given his own garb.

"Are you alright?" Mickey asked.

"I'm okay, but…Kairi…" she put a hand to her head. "She's not dead, but she's in great danger."

"How do you know?" Riku asked, curiosity and fear mingling in his voice.

"I…feel her, in my head. There is a connection between us I think. Even without hearing any of her thoughts, I feel her fear and pain." Namine shook her head. "It's very disconcerting."

"Can you track her like that?" Riku asked, hope coming in his voice, but it fell when Namine shook her head. He punched a wall in anger and sat down.

"Don't worry, Riku. We'll find them," Donald said.

"That's right! We did before, and we will again." Mickey said, smiling.

"Well, if we're going to find them, we better figure out what our next move is then," Roxas said. He was eager to be doing something, anything right now. He didn't like being bested, especially by a cheap shot, and he knew Sora was waiting for him again.

"Our next move?" Riku said, suspicion running through his tone.

"Yes, our next move. You can't expect me just to sit this out."

"I want you to stay away from me and my friends. I don't want you anywhere near them."

"You need us, Riku. You may not want the help or like it, but you need us," Namine said, putting a hand on his arm. "Like it or not, we are worried about them too."

"Us?" Roxas said, blinking in unbelief. "Namine, you can't be serious about going too. You'll be in more danger."

"I can handle myself. I learned enough magic to be of some use to you guys, and I want to help." She blushed a little. "Riku, do you think I can borrow something from Kairi to wear? I don't want to be running around in just this." She motioned to her nightgown.

"Uh…yeah, I don't think she'd mind…" Riku looked like it was the last thing he wanted to make a decision on and Roxas nearly laughed. "Uhm…let's head over to Kairi's, and we can figure out what we're doing from there."

* * *

The group arrived at Kairi's house and Namine excused herself to change upstairs. Roxas was still not fully pleased that Namine was coming along. She had been in enough danger already. He took a seat as far away from Riku as he could, not wanting to get into a fight with the boy. He could understand why Riku might have some trust issues with him. The last time the two had met, they'd been on opposite sides. After his defeat, Riku had plunged deeper into the darkness. It had taken Sora to return him toward the light.

The 'war council' decided to wait on Namine, and soon Mickey and his men were talking with Riku. Roxas tried to stay out of the conversation as much as possible. This was the first time he truly felt like an outsider, and he wasn't sure how to act around these guys. All he knew was that he needed to find Sora. They were part of each other, and Sora was in danger. Besides, he felt the need to help rescue Kairi, almost as though he was feeling what Sora would have for her. It was very strange.

Namine came down the stairs and for a moment, Roxas' heart stopped. The dress she had found was a deep black, with a low v-neck, short, v-shaped sleeves, all trimmed with a side, silver lace that was reminiscent of a fleur de l'is. The bodice was tight, seeming to cling to her form, while the skirt, separated from the bodice with another wide v of the lace, flared out at the hips, wide and round, trimmed along the bottom with more of that silver lace. The stockings rose to just above her ankles, topped with a point and again trimmed in the lace, and there were matching gloves, the point of which was just below the wrist, pointing towards the elbow, with more lace trim. The shoes were a shining black, with medium heels, and a silver fleur de l'is decorating the top, front of each. In short she was gorgeous.

Namine took a seat next to Roxas, gripping his hand slightly as she sat. Roxas smiled, but turned serious as Mickey spoke up. "I think in order for us to find Sora and Kairi, we need to find out more about our enemy."

"Mickey, you seemed to know who he was." Riku said, "You called him Restin as soon as you ran in."

Mickey nodded. "I found that much out, at least. We were at Radiant Garden , working with Cid and Tron to uncover more about the Heartless, when Tron came across an encrypted file the MCP had left behind. We weren't able to get much from it, but it appeared to be a file put there by the original Ansem."

"In it," Mickey continued, "was reference to a shady group Ansem had come across in his travels. They acted like the heartless, going after living beings, but were not after hearts."

"What were they after?" Riku asked.

"We don't know," Donald said sadly.

"The file is heavily guarded and we barely pulled bits of data. It was written like the journals he wrote when I first met him, but it was like we were pulling torn strips of paper from the file at best. We did manage to get the name of the leader, Restin, and a little bit about him. From the description, I recognized him when we arrived." Mickey seemed somber about it. "We would have been here sooner, to warn you, but he sent Heartless out to intercept us. We barely made it here."

"So, I take it you want us to go with you to Radiant Garden and see if they've found out more?" Roxas said.

"No, I'm sending you three to the Garden. Goofy, Donald and I will return to the castle so that we can see if we can learn more in our archives." Roxas looked at Riku, neither happy with this arrangement.

Namine looked at them both, then turned to Mickey. "We'll do it." She ignored the looks from the boys. "How will we contact you?"

Mickey shook his head. "We'll meet you there. Do not leave without us."

Namine nodded and stood. "You can count on us."

"Thank you," Mickey said.

"Just one minute. How are we going to travel two different directions with one gummi ship? Last I checked, we didn't have one here." Riku said.

"We flew in two. I anticipated we might need to split up. Donald will leave his here and fly with me."

"Now wait just a minute," Donald said, turning on Mickey, "why do I have to give them mine? Why can't they take yours?"

"Now, Donald we discussed this…"

"Don't give me that!"

"Donald, just give them the ship. I'm sure they'll take good care of it," Goofy said. Donald fumed, folding his arms and muttering to himself. "They're only going to the Garden with it."

"That's right, Donald, and Cid's got a gummi ship for them there," Mickey added.

"But your Majesty…" Donald tried to protest, but Mickey made it quite clear the argument was over. "Oh fine," he said, and he marched off, Goofy trailing after.

Mickey watched them go, turning back to the other three. "Be careful, you guys. The Heartless are out in force now, and they are attacking wherever they can."

"We will, your Majesty," Riku said, following the King out.

Roxas stood, looking at Namine. "Are you sure you want to come? This is going to be dangerous."

"Roxas," Namine said, holding out her hands and a giant brush appeared in them, "the Organization didn't call me a witch for nothing." Roxas looked at the brush, seeing that it was more of a staff, like what Donald carried. He was about to say more when loud arguing could be heard from outside. They looked at each other, then rushed outside. Riku was standing on Kairi's porch, arguing with three teens, all holding weapons of sorts. Roxas thought about helping out, but Riku seemed to know them and so he hung back.

"Riku, we're not going to be left behind. Sora and Kairi are our friends too," a blond haired boy said. The two other kids backed him up.

"I'm not saying that you aren't, but you can't come," Riku said, his arms folded.

This brought more arguing and Roxas rolled his eyes. They didn't have time for this. He was shocked as Namine walked past him over to the group. He reached out his hand to stop her, but she was determined and had moved beyond his reach. _Dammit, we don't know these people. _He hurried to join her as she reached the threesome.

Namine looked at the boy carrying the sword, who seemed to be the leader of these three. "And who will protect your home if you go?" she said softly, but the question pierced the argument as though she had shouted. All four turned towards her. "If you leave, no one will stop these beings from destroying everything you love." She gestured around. "You know what you are fighting, and you have proven yourselves. So stay here and protect your home, or come with us and pray you have something to come home to."

The three looked almost abashed at her statement. It was obvious none of them had thought about it, but they nodded, vowing to guard this place with their lives. Namine gave them a smile, then walked past them with Riku and Roxas following, her expression turning serious as soon as they were far enough out of sight. "That was impressive," Roxas said. _And a bit scary._

"We don't have time to baby-sit and none of them have any true scope of what is to come," she said, smiling as she did, "But they may learn while staying here and become the fighters they will need to be."

"What do you mean by that?" Roxas asked.

Riku looked at him, a little contempt in his voice. "You were part of Organization XIII. You should know there is danger coming. I have felt it ever since I helped Sora and Mickey close the door to light."

Namine nodded. "All three of them are important to this upcoming fight, but there will be others to fight alongside them, friends they have made. Those three are tied to this as well. They will learn, and they will be there when war comes."

Roxas shook his head. He didn't want to believe that it was true. Yet, he could not deny he had felt the rumblings, both when he'd been with the Organization and after, when he was in Twilight Town. He didn't know what they were when he was in Twilight Town, but now he could not deny they had been the same. None of the Organization members had thought what he'd had to say was very important when he'd told them. None except Axel anyway. They were more concerned with their own plots and plans, too caught up in the small things to see the monster behind them.

War was much too large to think about right now. He'd leave that to Sora and the others once this was over and he rejoined with the hero. "Let's go then. The sooner we find those two, the better." He put his hand out, looking at Riku. "We're in this together, win or lose, agreed?"

Riku looked surprised, but he nodded, a begrudging look on his face. "Together." He added his hand to Roxas'.

Namine's hand laid atop both. "Until the end of the road, wherever it may be." They nodded to each other, their pact to each other sealed, and they hurried off toward the gummi ship. "Hang in there, Kairi. We're coming…" Namine said, and Roxas couldn't help but add his own silent wish that both of them were alright.

* * *

**? ? ?**

"Hang in there, Kairi. We're coming…"

Kairi fought back to consciousness, the voice reverberating in her head. She was stiff and sore, and when she tried to move, she found out why. Her arms were shackled above her head and she had been left to hang in a standing position. She tried to work out the kinks as best she could. The last thing she remembered was Sora fighting some villain, then she remembered a large pain as it felt like she was being ripped apart. She remembered feeling like her body was going to be torn in half and then she collapsed.

"Sora. Riku," she called softly as she looked around. There was no response, but in the dimly lit dungeon, she could make out a figure in the darkness. One. That gave her hope that someone had gotten away. It also meant that this time, she wasn't alone.

She struggled in the chains, but they held fast. _Okay, being the damsel in distress is getting really old_, she thought sourly. Anger ran through her and her tail twitched angrily. She paused, taking a second to think that over. _Wait a minute. My tail?_ That shocked her into almost panicking. It took a lot of will to rein in her fear and remember that Sora had said that on certain worlds, he had to change forms to fit in. It was possible that she was an animal for that reason. If that was true, who had changed her? With Sora, it had been with Donald's magic.

Voices caused her to hold still and she closed her eyes. If anybody came in, she wanted to get the drop on them. They'd see she wasn't as helpless as they thought she was.

"Mr. Sheriff sir, should we be here? I thought that fellar wanted us helping to guard…"

"I know what he said we should be doing, but I only take orders from Prince John himself, and he hasn't told me nothin', so you just follow my orders," a voice interrupted, probably belonging to this sheriff.

"Yessir Mr. Sheriff sir."

"Sheriff, I still don't like it. It's one thing to go after outlaws, but going after royalty don't sit right with me," a third voice said.

"Trigger, if I hear one more thing about this, I'm gonna knock your head in. We do as we're told, see? Besides, no exile is worth gettin' riled up about."

"Yes sir. I've just got a feelin' in my bones that something's about to happen is all. I've taken the safety off ol' Bessie ever since that man and his dark followers showed." Trigger sounded a bit paranoid about all this.

"Trigger?"

"Yes, Sheriff?"

"Why don't you take the lead?"

"Yes sir," Trigger said sheepishly.

There were sounds of them leaving and Kairi opened her eyes again. _Dark followers? Could be Heartless, or whatever attacked us in the house._ Now more than ever, Kairi wanted to be free. Those men were going to be after royalty and she didn't want to imagine what they'd do when they found them. She shook the chains in anger, trying to get free, but all it did was cut into her fur.

She tried to wake the other form in the room, hoping her mind wasn't playing tricks on her, but whoever it was did not respond. She frowned, her whiskers twitching. This was getting her nowhere. She could see the torches in the hall, so she had some light, but she couldn't tell whether it was day or night.

After what seemed like hours of hanging there and trying to escape, she heard voices again, low so she couldn't understand, but they were there. Kairi felt her fur stand on end and she had to control herself into remaining still and shutting her eyes. _Just let them get close enough. _

There were soft voices, ones just low enough Kairi could not pick them up. As they neared the door, she caught a bit of their conversation, learning quickly that there were only two.

"It was sure nice of Bushel Britches to loan us his keys," one said, chuckling a little.

"Indeed it was John. We should repay his kindness soon."

Kairi nearly started. John! Was this the Prince the Sheriff spoke of? She wanted to wrap her claws around him already.

"The townsfolk will be singing songs after this, Rob. Even for you, this is a legendary mark."

"Just keep an eye out John. I want this done quick and easy, without any mess."

Kairi gulped and forced herself to still her trembling. She wasn't going to die without a fight. She heard the cell door open and felt the two enter the room.

"Well, well, not what we were expecting," John said, "I thought you were sure."

"I was, because I thought Marian would be the only one they'd be guarding. I wasn't expecting anyone else." He sighed. "Come along John, let's do our job."

Kairi was a little confused by what was being said, but she wasn't about to let up in case they were dangerous. This Marian could be the royalty they were after and found her instead. She'd ask questions when she was in a better position, if she was ever in one. She tensed just a little as one approached her. She heard the key click in her manacles. She roared as she leapt forward, pinning the smaller one to the wall.

"Hey," said the one known as John as he put a hand on her arm. It earned him a clawing and the hand withdrew. "Hey now, we're not your enemy!" She was grabbed and thrown backward. She stumbled and fell on her butt.

She looked up and nearly started in shock at seeing a large grizzly bear in a green outfit, complete with a green hat. The smaller one was a fox in similar garb and he was coughing as he rubbed his throat. She stood warily, not completely willing to believe him. The fox, who had to be Rob, looked at her, smiling a little. "She sure packs a wallop."

"Yeah," John replied sourly, "and she nearly took a chunk out of my hand. Some gratitude."

"I'm sorry, your Highness, but I wasn't really certain I wanted to be near the man who captured me," Kairi retorted.

"Your Highness?" John said, confused.

"You hear that, John? You've been promoted to royalty," Rob said, laughing.

"Well, I'll be. Maybe next I'll be having people bow to me." John said, an incredulous look on his face. He tried to put on his best air of dignity. This sent Rob into peals of laughter as he slumped against the wall.

Kairi sighed. "I'm sorry, but I think I've been left out of the joke. I thought you were this Prince John I overhead them talking about." Both of them paused, then burst out laughing again, but before any explanations could be given, there was a slithering sound out in the hallway that Kairi could just barely hear over the ruckus. Kairi leaned back, looking out the door, and scowled. _This isn't good. _Lit by the torches were several creatures that looked like oil covered snakes. The way they moved looked like they had swallowed a spring, but Kairi knew they were very dangerous as they came down the hall. The form was unmistakable to her. "Heartless…" There were seven total that she counted.

Rob was at her side in an instant, his face completely serious as he drew his sword. "Stand back, my dear. Let John and I…"

Kairi threw out her arm, her Keyblade appearing in a flash. "You're going to need my help." She looked sternly back at him.

Rob looked at her for a moment, then nodded. "John, free the boy. We'll cover you."

"Be careful Rob."

Rob gave a wry smile. "You know me, John."

"Yeah, that's what worries me." John chuckled as Kairi and Rob focused on the incoming attack. The snakes came in and Kairi dodged one, slicing at a second, which took a glancing blow but managed to get away. Kairi's next blow destroyed the snake, its body evaporating. She managed to see Rob deflect the attack of one before slicing through another before she had to concentrate on the battle at hand.

One of the snakelike creatures leapt for her, only to run into her Keyblade. She smiled, taking out another and a fourth. She looked around, trying to see others, but all she saw was Rob, smiling as he sheathed his sword. "Most impressive, my dear, most impressive."

"Thank you." She walked over to Rob. "You fight well yourself."

"Being praised by someone of your status, your highness, is a wonderful compliment."

"Highness?" Kairi squeaked, caught off-guard.

Rob's face suddenly became serious and he shoved on her, trying to scrabble for her sword. "Look out!" Kairi saw a Heartless snake coming at them and she tried to bring up her Keyblade to defend herself. She didn't need to. Someone leapt from the cell and destroyed the snake, the Keyblade almost humming with the speed of it.

Kairi felt relief flood her and she ran and hugged Sora, who let out a confused squeak. "Hey, Kairi. Good to see you too…" He sounded embarrassed.

Kairi looked up at him, surprised to see a fox's face staring back at her, but there was no mistaking those blue eyes, it had to be him. He even still had a trace of his normal hair. "I was worried about you."

Sora held her close, but before he could say more, a coughing interrupted them and they pulled apart. "I'm sorry to break up this reunion, but do either of you know where they are holding a maid named Marian?" Both of them shook their heads. Rob frowned and he looked at John. "We need to find her Johnny. I don't know what Prince John has planned, but I know she's in danger."

He started to run off, but the big bear grabbed him by the collar. "Hold on there Rob. We can't just go rushing into this. We've already been here too long."

"John, I'm not just going to abandon her."

"We won't abandon her," Sora, said, walking up to the pair. "We'll help you."

Kairi nodded. "You rescued us, after all. It's only fair we help you now."

A trumpeting was heard, and Kairi was certain an alarm had been raised. Sora seemed to agree. "But your friend is right. We do Marian no good by getting caught now."

Rob looked between the three, hoping someone would waver and it hurt Kairi to see him have to do so, but even she knew staying right now and searching would be suicidal. "Alright, but we can't wait much longer. Thank you both for this."

Sora nodded. "I'm Sora."

"And I'm Kairi."

"Robin Hood, at your service my friends," he said, giving a grandiose bow, "and this is Little John." He pulled out his bow and John balanced his staff. "Let us escape to Sherwood."

Prince John sat on the throne, looking down at the bowing Sheriff of Nottingham, though it was hard to make him out through the glare of anger falling into place over his eyes. "So you mean to tell me," he said, a growl echoing through his words, "that not only did you not follow the plan, keeping up the guard where you were told to be, but that THAT rogue managed to slip past your guards, and free the prisoners we were supposed to be guarding!" His voice rose with each word, and with the last, he stood and threw a goblet that shattered on the wall.

The Sheriff flinched, and rose. "Now sire…I was only thinking of protecting your interests."

"My…interests? My INTERESTS! You're bungling has cost me an alliance that I need to bring down that wretched cur!" Prince John advanced on the Sheriff, trembling in rage, and the wolf began backing up.

"Relax, your majesty…" a smooth voice said, echoing across the great hall. A panther dressed in a motley collection of cloth walked in, a hard smile across his face. "This little mishap may have its benefits as well."

Prince John heard a hiss from Sir Hiss, but at least it was low. _Thank God for that,_ he thought as he watched the man walk across the room like he owned the place. The Prince knew of the serpent's dislike for the rogue and his ways. Prince John himself could barely stomach having a destitute in his presence. The man did bring a substantial addition to his army though, and Prince John could hardly afford to lose him now.

The Sheriff seemed somewhat relieved as the Prince backed down, though he growled. "And just HOW will any of this benefit, Braxis?"

"Patience, my dear Prince. Some things are best not discussed in front of…lesser men."

The Sheriff was towering over the smaller man in a heartbeat. "Now listen to me you low brow…"

Braxis brushed his hand on his shirt, nonplussed. "Now, now Sheriff," he said, mocking the Sheriff with his own voice, "why don't you just take the crawler and run along? The Prince and I have a Kingdom to take." Prince John nearly laughed at that. That was one thing about this filthy creature he liked. The man had a talent for imitation.

"I don't take orders from you, fur face."

"But you do from me, Sheriff, and I will have you remember that. Why don't you get out of my sight before I finish what I started?" The threat under the words was quite obvious and the Sheriff hightailed it out of the room.

"Sssurely Ssssire, you can't expect me to go too?" Hiss said, slithering down off his seat towards the Prince.

"I do, but I expect to see you and that bungler later."

Hiss gulped, and slithered off, his movements radiating disapproval. Prince John could care less. He waited until Braxis and he were alone. "You may be important, but you do not order my men around, understand?"

"Oh, I understand perfectly. But if you would order them around, I wouldn't have lost my prisoners." Braxis pulled up a chair. "If it weren't for the fact that it proved my point, I'd be withdrawing my offer to capture this Robin Hood for you."

"Your point, sir?"

"Why, about love, sire. This Robin is desperately in love with Maid Marian. He will do anything for her, including die trying to help her. We put her in enough danger, and the fool will rush in, and we'll have him." He leaned back in his chair, laughing. "And my two captives will surely wish to help. We'll kill two birds with one stone."

Prince John scowled. "What type of danger are you talking about?" He was ruthless to those that opposed him, but Maid Marian had not done so…yet, and she was Richard's cousin. Should he somehow make it back from that craziness Hiss had hypnotized him into, he didn't want him using her as a martyr to rally the people. He wanted her as a hostage.

"She'll be fine and in no real danger. What we need to do is make him think she is. Maybe threaten a public execution. Announce it to the people. Except it won't be the real Marian led to the gallows. Someone dressed as her with a shroud or some such should be able to mask our duplicate nicely enough." Braxis ran his claws gently along the table top, grinning.

Prince John began to smile. "And then when the fools come to rescue her..."

"We spring the trap and capture them all," Braxis finished, picking up a goblet and downing some. Prince John cackled in delight at the plan. Braxis eyed him. "What you do with the rogues is none of my business, but I must express that you not harm my captives. They are important to us."

Prince John waived a hand dismissively. "You'll get what you desire, young man. So long as I have Robin Hood, that is."

"That's all I ask." He stood up. "We'll discuss the specifics on the morrow."

"Wait. Why are these two so important to you? I know one is royalty, but I've never seen her. The other seems to be some ruffian. What are they to you?" Prince John watched his partner closely and his body did tense a little.

"Who they are is no concern, your highness."

"They are when I know nothing of them. I am the king and you will tell me what I want to know."

"They are dangerous criminals, and though I shouldn't tell you more, the princess is an exile, bewitched by the rogue with her. She was to be…my bride."

"I see," John said, bristling at his impudence. The fool thought he could lie to the king and get away with it. He forced himself to remain calm. "Well, if you would be so kind as to show my men back in on your way out, Braxis…"

"Yes, your Majesty," Braxis bowed, his cape brushing the floor and he turned on his heel, walking out.

"I do like the sound of that phrase," John said under his breath, smiling. The prince waited until both Hiss and the Sheriff were back in the room and the door was shut before he flopped down on the throne again, rubbing his paws greedily.

"Sssire, I don't sssee why you trust that ssslippery creature."

"I don't, Hiss," Prince John said, smiling, "but sometimes, one must use a criminal to catch one."

"So you mean to tell me all that rubbish he's spewing on about, about change and working together against the rabble in this kingdom…"

"Means nothing to me, Sheriff. He is a means to an end. His, and Robin Hood's. I swore I'd give all my gold if I could get rid of him, and this way, I don't have to. Ah ha!" He laughed, standing and walking to the window. "His 'men' are not as loyal to him as he believes they are. They are clamoring to be let loose among the poor and I have promised them as much when I have Robin Hood." He could see the aghast look on his minions' faces, but he didn't care. "They will flock to me and I will have control of them then."

"B..But Sssire!"

"Silence, Hiss, or I shall feed you to them myself." He watched Hiss gulp, glad the serpent feared him too much to betray him. The threat had been enough to shut him up. "Now, our friend has an ingenious plan for Robin's capture." He paused, allowing himself a moment to revel in his own genius. "And once I have Robin Hood secured, I will use his own men to tear him apart along with Robin Hood, our two escapees, and anyone else foolish enough to get in my way." He began to laugh, a cruel chuckle that seemed to shake his men to the core.


	4. Chapter 3

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 3: Search and Rescue **

**Sherwood Forest**

The crisp night air made the forest that much more peaceful. Sora stretched, watching the fireflies dance as he listened to the group of outlaws play a lively tune to keep up the spirits of the townsfolk in hiding. From his place against the tree he watched them dance and sing, a perfect distraction from the darkness that threatened to drown out the village's hopes. For one night, they didn't need to worry about the strange beings that were called Heartless. Sora wished he could do the same sometimes. He was the Keyblade wielder, however, and it was his duty to protect these people. As much as he enjoyed having fun and kidding around with his friends, he was perfectly capable of turning serious in a fight.

This Robin Hood that led the ragged group against Prince John was the same way. Right now, he was joking around with a group of small children, one of whom seemed intent on imitating Robin in every way. "Acting like his idol." He wondered if he'd ever touch someone in that way.

He yawned, staring up at the night sky. It was nice to relax after a night full of danger. The peace of the forest soothed Sora's soul and he smiled. The flight from the castle had been harrowing. Not only had the Heartless been all over, but they had also had to avoid the rhino guards. Sora had been particularly impressed with how well Kairi had fought. All the training she'd had with Riku and himself had paid off. There was a confidence there, and a determination.

The thought of Riku and Kairi finally stirred Sora out of his reverie and he got up to go in search of his friend. Even though he would have liked to have all of his friends here, it was nice that he at least had Kairi this time.

His eager search lead him into the forest and he stumbled into a small glade, the moonlight filtering through the leaves and illuminating Kairi as she knelt before a sparkling spring that hurried its way through the shaded wood. Sora's eyes were mesmerized as he watched her run a hand through the wet grass. She now wore something he never thought he would see on someone of her stature; the pale light green woolen fabric clung to her in just the right way as the modest neck line dipped only to that of a lady, its mid-length sleeves hung loosely at her elbows, and at her waist the skirt flowed down gently to tease around her knees.

This outfit allowed for more movement, unlike the longer and billowier one that she arrived in which would tangle and mangle with even the slightest movement. The dress's freedom had caused an uproar however with Robin as he huffed about it not befitting a princess, especially after she had asked to borrow a small knife, and cut a slit in one side of the skirt, from hip to hem, to be sure that she could move as needed in a fight. That seemed to delight Kairi even more. At this time, she even wore the hat that resembled the one the boys wore. Simple yet distinguished, it lay slightly to one side as she pondered the water beneath her. Her hand glided through the water as she sat there, a portrait of perfection.

Sora padded toward her, hoping to get a chance to talk. He thought she was unaware of his presence, but as he got closer, he saw her Keyblade flash out, and he had to call out to her to keep from being attacked.

"Sora? I wasn't expecting you," she said, going back to the ground. She sounded sad, and Sora wasn't sure why.

"Kairi? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I was just thinking, that's all." Kairi did not look at him, instead staring up at the stars. "It's so beautiful tonight."

"Yeah," Sora said, sitting down beside her. He put a paw on her shoulder, smiling.

"Do you think Riku and the King are out there looking for us?"

"Yeah. They'll find us. Everything will be okay."

"I can feel her," Kairi said. She looked up at Sora, answering his confused look. "Namine. I don't know how, but she's out there right now. She's worried." Sora wasn't sure what to say to that. Kairi leaned back into him, and Sora held her close. Somehow, words weren't needed right then.

A soft cough interrupted them moments later and Kairi started out of his grasp. Sora flushed in embarrassment as Robin stepped out of the bushes. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was hoping to have your help. Maid Marian is still being held in the castle and I must free her."

"Of course you can have our help," Kairi said.

"Oh no, your Highness. I couldn't put you in danger again," Robin said, "but if your guard and I..."

"Robin, I'm not helpless, nor am I taking the danger lightly. I know the risks, and I want to help." Kairi practically bristled as she spoke. "And Sora is not my guard. He is my friend."

Robin chuckled, though Sora thought he heard a little hurt in his voice. "As you wish, your Majesty. We will come get you when we are ready to plan our next move." He bowed again and slipped back toward the sound of the music.

"What was that about, Kairi?" Sora asked, as Kairi walked further up the shore.

"I'm not helpless, Sora!" she cried, kicking at the ground.

"He knows you aren't, Kairi. He saw you fight before. He's just concerned about..."

"He's treating me like something I'm not!" She whirled around, anger and frustration mixing on her face. She looked like she was trying not to cry. She slumped down to the ground, not looking in his direction as she ran her paw along the lake's surface. Sora was very unsure of what he should do, but he knelt in front of her, reaching out one paw and gripping her shoulder reassuringly. "They all think I'm some kind of royalty..."

"Well, you are a princess," Sora pointed out.

"But I'm not, Sora. I don't know anything about what a princess is supposed to be like, and I don't know that I really belong with them anyway."

Sora grinned. "You should have talked more with Jasmine. I should also introduce you to Ariel. She's a princess of Atlantica, but you'd never believe it if you met here. They are both more adventurers than princesses." He reached out, lifting her chin. "You are a princess of Heart, Kairi, but that doesn't define you. You define its meaning with how you act every day."

Kairi smiled and threw herself into Sora's arms, gripping him like she expected him to vanish on her. He was momentarily startled, but then he held her close to his body. "Thank you," she whispered. She sat back up, brushing tears from her eyes. "I suppose I should start by apologizing to Robin. He didn't deserve my shouting at him."

Sora agreed and helped Kairi to her feet. "Let's rejoin the party then." He wondered if that was why she'd thrown herself into learning how to fight. *Maybe she wanted to run from that responsibility. * He didn't know for sure, but he hoped now she'd learn to accept that part of herself.

As they neared the clearing, Kairi took his arm, leaning into him. "Sora, I want to protect this world so that there can be more nights like this. I never want anyone to go through what I did when our world was destroyed."

"I know what you mean Kairi. Maybe one day, we can stop the Heartless for good."

It felt good with Kairi so close to him, and he almost missed the lack of music as they neared. Kairi stiffened and Sora was worried. Panicked voices were floating around as they both rushed into the clearing. "What's going on?" Sora asked the nearest person.

"Prince John is going to hang Maid Marian!"

* * *

Kairi felt sick to her stomach as she listened to a fat badger in brown robes with tufts of white hair around his ears and bushy white eyebrows explain what he'd heard. Apparently, Prince John was going to use this execution to show the people he did not fear the absent King and to show the people he would execute any traitor, regardless of blood, to keep the people down and cowering in fear. Kairi couldn't believe someone would be that cruel, but apparently this Prince John was. She kept having a bad feeling about this and the more she listened to Friar Tuck's story, the worse she felt.

Robin looked pale through the whole story. Little John was alternately shocked and angry and Sora was looking determined. Kairi wasn't sure what to feel. Disgusted was probably a leading emotion, but there were too many to count. She had seen some villains since this had started, but there was a level of cowardice mixed with evil that she had never seen in this act. The man was going to hang an innocent woman for no other reason than to dig at his foe. She was trembling as the friar finished telling what he'd heard.

"I have to stop this," Robin said, standing up quickly.

Little John cut off his exit. "Now hold up there Rob. You know this is a trap, right?"

"You can't expect me just to let her die, John!"

"I know, Robin, but we can't just go rushing in either. We get caught and it doesn't do anyone any good," Sora said.

"The boy is right," Friar Tuck said, "getting caught up is exactly what he wants."

Robin scowled, but he backed off. "Alright, but we can't lounge around. We don't have much time and the longer we wait, the closer it comes to Marion's death."

The boys started going over what needed to be done, but Kairi wasn't able to follow the conversation despite her best efforts. A sea of red clouded her vision and a darkness fell over her mood. She was starting to feel overwhelmed. All she could think about was what she would do if it were Sora or Riku or any of the others from the Islands. She couldn't stand it. She started to sympathize with Robin. He cared for this Marion and Kairi was certain he loved her. How could he possibly wait to save her, knowing every delay might lose his love forever?

"...Can you do that, Kairi?" Sora's voice cut through her reverie like a knife.

"Uhm...yeah, I can do that," she said, though she had no idea what she'd just agreed to.

"Good, then we wait until the execution's time."

Kairi frowned. This seemed all wrong. She stood up, needing to clear her head. "Can you guys excuse me? I need to have some time alone." She didn't wait for acknowledgment. She just turned and hurried into the woods.

Kairi wasn't sure how long she ran, but she finally stopped, clutching her side in pain. She dropped to her knees, but her arms went around her chest. It almost felt as though her heart was going to burst. A well of fear and hurt built up in her and she cried out. She collapsed to the ground, her body laying against the cool ground and she tried to fight the emotions away one at a time as she stared up into the night sky. Stars twinkled back to her through the canopy of leaves, looking down at her as if watching her to see if she'd do the right thing. The pressure she felt was enormous and the weight of her fear tried to press her into inaction.

"No." she said, anger washing it all away. "I won't allow this..." She pushed herself to a sitting position, her head tilted back as she stared at those disapproving white eyes against the blackened sky. "Do you hear me? I won't allow this!" Her shout carried through the forest and she felt almost embarrassed afterward.

The words continued to spill from her throat anyway. It was almost as if she'd needed to prove to something out there that she was going to live up to their expectations. "I will not allow the tyrannical to oppress the weak. I will not stand on the sidelines anymore. I am strong enough now and I will prove that to anyone who dares get in my way!" She had meant to lower her voice to a whisper and it had started out that way, but her voice rose with each word and in the end she'd been shouting again.

"You should be careful, M'lady. The forest has ears, and drawing the attention of the wrong ones would be a most foolish idea indeed." Robin hopped over a tree root and Kairi felt shame fill her again. "I felt the need to come after you. You seemed very distraught."

Kairi stared at the ground. She ran a claw in the dirt, trying to think of how best to say what was on her mind. This was someone that didn't know her and she didn't want him to think her a coward. "I needed to get away."

"That much was obvious," the fox said with a smile, "but what you needed to get away from is another matter."

"I'd rather not talk about it," Kairi said shortly.

"That's not an option unfortunately. We need you for this, your Majesty, and if this is going to interfere with the plan, we need to know now." He walked over and put an arm around her shoulder. "What's the matter, now? You can tell me."

Kairi flushed a little at his touch, the comfort feeling so good, and she leaned against him. "I can't stand the thought of anything going wrong. If we fail..."

"We won't." Robin said, interrupting her.

"You can't know that, Robin." She pushed away from him gently and turned to face him. "And should we fail with this plan, there'll be no time to make another." She looked into his eyes, unsure of how to truly express what she felt inside. "We can't fail. I can't…"

Robin looked at her and gently held her, reassuring her in a way words could not. "What do you suggest then?"

"I don't know. I just feel...this plan is wrong." She turned to Robin. "Could we go in early? Make our way to the castle and free her before he tries to kill her?"

"I don't know if that will be possible. John and I thought she'd be in the dungeons, and no one has seen any sign of her in the castle since he took her. We just have no way of knowing where she is right now." A crafty looked spread across Robin's face. "However, we could try something else from the crowd."

Kairi leaned in, a smile widening on her face as she listened to Robin's idea. It was brilliant, yet dangerous. However, if all went well, they might be able to save Marian and get away before Prince John knew what had happened.

* * *

Robin led Kairi through the throng of people, their cloaks pulled low to disguise their identities. Kairi could feel the fear dripping off the people gathered at the edge. Prince John was either stupid or cocky to let this many people near the execution, but Robin had told her that John was trying to show everyone who was really in command, even should King Richard return.

Kairi assumed that was why John wanted to work with the Heartless. He was worried about losing his troops. The more of an army he had, the harder it would be to remove him from power. It was a very dangerous deal though, and from what Robin told her about Prince John, he likely knew nothing about the price he might have to pay.

The rhino guards were creating an intimidating wall in their armor as they stared down the commoners, some swinging their axes back and forth to show they might use them if necessary. Many quailed back, though they did not leave. Kairi felt Robin shift on her left and she brushed her sweaty paws on the cloak, anticipating the arrival of Marian. She hoped everybody did his or her part, or it would be up to Sora's plan alone.

A gasp ran through the crowd, reaching the duo on the end. Kairi craned her neck to get a glimpse as two hounds led a cloaked figure down the path. It had to be Marian. Shackles and chains restricted her movement along the path toward the gallows. That would make things a bit tricky. Robin hadn't planned on those. He thought John would be confident enough that a woman could not escape so easily.

Kairi gripped Robin's paw as he tensed up, hoping the fox would not do anything rash. Timing was crucial in this and it wouldn't do for him to rush things. He glanced her way and gave her a curt nod, but she could tell this was affecting him, seeing her in chains. *Just keep it together. *

The hounds neared Kairi and Sora's group and suddenly the crowd of peasants surged toward the rhinos. The rhino guards had trouble trying to keep the crowd back, and that's the distraction Robin and Kairi were waiting for. The two tossed their cloaks behind them, drawing sword and Keyblade. They ran by the rhinos, attacking the hounds quickly.

Steel clashed and rang in Kairi's ear, but surprise was an advantage as they knocked both of the jailors back. "C'mon," she cried, grabbing a hold of one of Marian's arms, Robin taking the other. She got about a step when pain laced through her beyond anything she'd ever felt. The hairs on her body were standing on end and she lost her grip on Marian's arm, sinking to her knees. As she gasped for air and fought to stay conscious, she looked up. She saw the fox remove her hood, only to see the illusion ripple away. A panther stood where the maid had been and his smile was the last thing she saw.


	5. Chapter 4

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 4: Of Princes and Thieves**

**Sherwood Forest**

Braxis watched Kairi fall to the ground, her body crashing in slow motion to him. It was almost a pity she'd been that easy to outsmart. He'd half-hoped she would see through the disguise, if only so he could take on both Keyblade wielders at once. His plan had been almost perfect as usual, and she'd fallen just as intended. The only flaw was that Sora was not with them. _A minor problem, but things rarely go completely right._

His hand still crackled as time went back to normal. The power was exhilarating and he reveled in it. He was the best among the Hunters. He was strong, skilled, and always prepared. He was also bored. He'd watched over the two as Restin had wanted, hiding himself in rags to keep in the prince's good graces. He'd been secretly pleased when they'd escaped, glad to have something of interest again. He had hoped a battle with the Keyblade Masters would be more of a challenge. So far he was disappointed.

"Kairi!" Sora's panicked voice carried over the screaming masses quite well. Braxis looked up to see the boy struggling to get through the crowd. _Let's make this easier and get rid of any interference._ He raised a paw, lightning surged off it and began to shoot down, hitting the ground near the spectators. Peasants and guards screamed and fled quickly, leaving just two fighters: Sora and a very large bear. Braxis called for the Soulless, his pets coming to his aid. "Keep the bear busy and away from the others," he said and watched them slither away. He wanted this to be an even match. It was the only true way to test his skill against his opponent.

There were no words between the two as the Keyblade Master closed the gap on Braxis, rage and worry on his face as his Keyblade swung at his target. Braxis spun away, bringing out an oak staff that parried the blow, giving Braxis enough time to dance away. The staff was surprisingly sturdy, meeting Sora's Keyblade with each attack and turning it away. The magic coursed through it and Braxis shot fire at Sora. The boy countered with an ice spell and steam rose between them.

"Not bad, boy. But you'll have to do better to get by me." Braxis gathered shadows from the staff, flinging them towards Sora. They swirled around the boy, whipping into a frenzy as Sora stepped back. He held his paw out, squeezing it to bring the shadows together. He heard the boy yelp in pain a few times as they closed in around him.

A loud cry came from within the shadows and suddenly the Keyblade came flying out of them, whipping end over end. Braxis twisted sideways, narrowly avoiding the blade as it spun by. He turned, following its path as he felt his magic falter. It spun out, then came flying back at him. Braxis continued his spin, watching as it missed him again and he saw Sora charging out of the corner of his eye, catching the Keyblade upon its return and leaping at Braxis, the Keyblade locked over his shoulder.

Braxis knew the blow was coming and he did the only thing he could think of. He allowed his momentum to take over, falling backwards just as Sora's slice passed over his head. Braxis crashed to the ground, pain briefly shooting up his back. Thankfully, Sora's momentum carried him over Braxis and he was forced to roll as he landed, coming up in a crouch with the Keyblade at the ready. Braxis eyed the fox with new-found respect. That had been close.

Braxis pulled on his magic again, this time a column of earth rising in front of him. He sent a ball of power into it that broke it apart, sending several medium chunks of rock soaring at Sora. Sora countered, creating a swirling barrier of wind that whipped the chunks away from him and behind. He then charged at Braxis, ducking under another rock chunk and swinging at him. Braxis managed to pull up a shadow shield in time, but it still hurt as the blade made contact and Braxis was knocked back by the blow. He winced, jumping back and launching a ball of light at Sora's feet that exploded. Sora was forced to stop, shielding his eyes from the glare, and was caught in the chest by another column of earth that sent him flying backwards. He crashed to the ground, saved from major harm by the wind barrier that dissipated just after he landed.

Braxis gasped, unable to press his advantage because of the pain he was in. The boy was as good as he'd heard and that disturbed him. Braxis had never lost a battle. He had been trained to win, and that was what he did. He was now very grateful that he'd knocked out the other two. He was not equipped to deal with three skilled sword fighters, especially two wielding Keyblades. He needed to end this and fast.

Taking in the pain, he drew fire to his palms, firing one after another at the boy as he was trying to get back up. Sora rolled to one side, calling on lightning that shot down at Braxis. Once again, Braxis's shadow shield saved him from lethal harm, but he felt the pain again. He called on the earth, bringing it above him to deal with the remainder of the strikes, then formed ice shards that shot up from the ground, creating ghostly spires amongst the green field. They cut through Sora's fur as he dodged away.

His magicks were being drained from all this fighting, and he was going to run out if he kept going. He needed to save what he had left for emergencies now. Braxis raced out of his earth shield, closing the gap between himself and Sora. He wasn't a great close-combat fighter, but he could hold his own against this so-called hero.

He could see the blood running down Sora's fur as his staff met Sora's Keyblade in a series of thrusts, parries and maneuvers. Sora was the better swordsman, but he was hampered by the injuries. Braxis kept driving him around their dueling arena, though he was tiring. It was going to be a matter of who made a mistake first, and it happened to be Braxis. He feinted one way, but slipped in doing so, and his parry came too late. The Keyblade connected with the staff and sent it flying out of reach. Braxis stared up at the cocky smile on the boy's face, despite the wound, and Braxis couldn't wait to wipe it off. He had to be patient, for his last magical attack would have to be perfect. He wasn't about to admit defeat to this child.

He never got the chance. As Sora advanced, several Soulless appeared around him, their distinctive red eyes glaring as they attacked the Keyblade wielder. He fought back, destroying a few, but his moves were too slow and they quickly took him down as he fell unconscious.

Braxis was furious. "What are you doing?" he cried, forcing himself to a standing position. He had never felt so cheated. The battle was his to fight. He never used outsiders. "Get off him. Now!" The Soulless turned, the tendrils on their head twitching as they stared him down. They got off Sora, and Braxis snarled. "Now disperse!" They stared at him, twitching and moving, but they stayed on the battlefield. It unnerved Braxis. They had never disobeyed him before. "I said go!"

Instead, they swarmed, surrounding him quickly. Braxis's eyes widened in fear, confused. He spun, realizing how many there were. He had no weapon, and not enough magic to destroy them all. _Why are they turning on me now?_

He got his answer as Prince John arrived in the courtyard, laughing as his toadies followed. "They won't listen to a commoner like you now. They are under my command." The lion was smiling as he rubbed his paws together. "Soulless! Destroy Robin Hood! Destroy them all!"

Braxis looked around, trying to see a way to stop them. Only the big bear was still up and fighting, and he had his hands full. Braxis dodged one attack, getting slashed by a second and another blow shattered his shadow shield. They clawed into his fur and the wounds came fast. He dropped to one knee, panting. Braxis sighed, knowing he had one shot. After all, he refused to lose, especially like this. He pulled on the last of his magic and it shot into the air. All he could do now was hope. Dizziness fell over him and he used his hands to steady himself, unable to defend himself anymore. He watched as the Soulless came at him, leaping to tear into their prey.

A rush swept over him and someone landed in front. He watched as Kairi cut through the Soulless right at its emblem, destroying more as they came. Relief swept over him. His healing had worked. He closed his eyes, hoping not to black out.

* * *

When the energy flooded Kairi and she regained consciousness, her first thought was that she was going to tear the panther to shreds. Her first chance at proving herself, and he'd suckered her. She shoved herself to her feet, looking around for him. She wanted blood.

Her opinion changed when she saw the creatures that looked like Heartless swarming in on him. Her first instinct was to leave him to his fate out of spite, but that washed away in the briefest of moments and she was running toward him. She sliced through three of the creatures, leapt over the panther and caught one of them in midair, her Keyblade meeting resistance for only a second before it vaporized.

"Beware the Soulless," the panther wheezed and she could tell he was in bad shape. "They're very dangerous when they're angry."

"I'll keep it in mind," she said, anger lacing her voice. She kept between him and the creatures he called Soulless, slicing one and catching a second with a glancing blow. "Can you run?"

"I don't run," came the reply and she cursed the man for a fool.

"Fine, just stay behind me." The minions kept appearing and she destroyed them as they tried to take her. They were adjusting strategies on her, trying to see what it would take to get through her. A couple came around, but the panther beat them off with his fists despite his injuries.

She felt Sora's presence as he entered the fray, grateful for the help. "Sorry I'm late," he said, steel in his voice but also a bit of joy she couldn't help but notice was directed at her. "I wanted to be fully prepared."

"Next time, don't wait so long or I'll finish it all for you," she shot back. She and Sora flanked the panther.

"Wouldn't want you to have all the fun, now would I?" Sora flourished his Keyblade and cut down another Soulless.

"As much as I'd like to agree, do you two think you can deal with them on your own?" the panther asked.

His question was answered as Robin and Little John joined in. "No, but all of us together should be able to." Sora reached back, handing an ether to him. "Think you can cover us?"

Kairi wasn't sure it was wise to give their enemy any help. She didn't trust him not to attack again once the threat was over. He nodded though, downing it and casting a healing spell on himself as the Soulless swarmed in. She could hear Prince John yelling for their heads, but she settled on the more immediate threat, attacking the Soulless as they presented themselves. The battle became her focus, and she was only vaguely aware of anything other than the fight between the Soulless and her friends.

It wasn't just the basic Soulless either. Some of the snake Heartless joined in, as well as Shadows and a few larger Soulless that reminded Kairi of the Defenders from Hollow Bastion. Their shields had lions as well, though these were flat on the shields. They looked more like the rhino guards Prince John had around the castle, and Kairi might have mistaken them for another group of them, save for the insignia of the Soulless burned into the armor's shoulder, the glowing red eyes, and the large spikes protruding from the back that made it almost impossible to get a successful strike on them. They held back for the most part, letting the others wear the group down.

She occasionally darted over to help Robin or Sora, then dealing with those that tried to tear her apart while her back was turned. Her friends returned the favor, but in the melee she didn't always know who did what. Twice she was cut deep, but healing magic from the panther brought her back to full strength. Somehow, in the middle of the fight, he'd retrieved his staff, and it allowed him to focus his magic into much deadlier strikes. She wasn't about to ask him how he'd done so in the middle of the melee. She let him deal with the larger creatures, since his magic could penetrate their defenses.

Prince John was howling in rage, though his whine took away from any dignity he may have carried. It urged Kairi on, knowing deep down they were going to win. After a few more minutes, the clearing was empty save for the five of them, Prince John and his two followers. A hand rested on her shoulder and she looked up at the panther. "Thank you for saving me," he said, though she could tell he was not comfortable saying so.

Kairi shrugged off his grip, still not sure she should trust him but she nodded. "You're welcome." She couldn't keep the anger out of her reply. The pain he'd caused was too raw.

He took it in stride, turning to Prince John. "You shouldn't have betrayed me."

"I...I was told to, Braxis. I was told I could have your army if I did...you know how it is..." Prince John was twitching and stammering, but the fury in his fear was very evident. "The man in blue and silver armor said you needed to be removed..."

Kairi's eyes widened. She remembered someone like that from the islands. She turned to Braxis as he roared in anger, starting toward Prince John. Sora got in his way, trying to talk him out of it, and Robin had to help hold the man back. Kairi joined in, not wanting him to hurt her new friends.

"Sssire, I think we should beat a hasssty withdrawal." The snake said.

"Yeah," agreed the Sheriff, "he who runs away and all." He sheathed his sword and both started to run, but John remained behind.

"No...I will not be made a fool of again!" His fear fled as the Heartless rose up around him. "Heartless! I don't care what it takes! I will give anything to be rid of these fools once and for all!"

"Don't!" Kairi yelled, knowing what he was asking, but they converged on him. Kairi thought for a moment that they were stealing his heart, but instead he began to grow. Kairi had never seen Heartless do anything like this. More Heartless rose and absorbed in. Prince John's skin changed to a dark black, rippling as the limbs that were so weak and frail changed, muscling over. His eyes turned silver and white and his fangs grew in length. "Oh no..." When the Heartless stopped, a lion three times Prince John's size stood before them, growling from all fours. It roared, shaking the ground, and Kairi dropped to the grass as it leapt over them. They were already weakened from the earlier battle, and she felt lost, not sure how they were going to stop him now.

* * *

Sora could only watch, mouth agape, as Prince John transformed. He didn't have much time to react, his footing shaky with every roar or jump. He stumbled to his feet, knowing they would have to find a way to stop him before it was too late. The lion reminded Sora of the time he had to face Cerberus at the Coliseum with Donald and Goofy, and, maybe they could defeat it in the same way. "Aim for the head!" he yelled as he rushed in.

The lion roared as Sora ran in, a shockwave coming from it knocking him back. He managed to land on his feet and he cast Aero to shield himself from the second wave. Lightning crackled and rained down around the lion, striking it in the face. That only made it angrier and it roared again. Braxis dodged away, but the shockwave tore through the grass, leaving nothing but dead earth behind it. Kairi raced in, her Keyblade slashing at the legs as she ran by. She came for a second pass and was forced to dodge back as it swiped at her.

Two arrows flew past Sora, embedding in the lion's flank. It cried out, shook them off and kept coming. Sora raced for the back legs, slicing at one and then trying to climb up the other. Prince John shook his leg and Sora clung to it, trying to hang on. He lost his grip and flew off, Little John catching him to break his fall. Kairi hurried over as Braxis kept it distracted and helped Sora up. "I don't think hitting the head will work," she muttered as she turned back. Braxis was leading it away, dark blades shooting from his hands at the head. Prince John slowed under the assault, but it was more annoyance than pain in his roars.

"He can't be indestructible," Little John said, staring at the lion. "I'm gonna help Rob. You two let me know when you have a plan." And with that he lumbered off.

Kairi glanced at Sora, smirking. "He doesn't know you very well if he thinks you're the planning type. You normally just rush in and hope it all works out. I was shocked you thought of something to stop the execution."

Sora glowered a little, but she was right. Most of the time, he fought with his heart, not his head. Lightning crackled as Braxis shot at the lion in a desperate attempt to keep him back, hitting all over the head and body. Most seemed to do nothing more than irritate him, but his shoulder dipped a little when one hit the small of the back. "Did you see that?" he cried.

"The back is the weak point!" Kairi yelled. Then she cursed. "But we can't just keep tossing spells at it. We need to get up there!"

Sora nodded. Before, with Cerberus, he'd been able to climb up the back legs and avoid the chomping teeth of the three-headed beast. The lion seemed to know its back was weakest and tried to keep it out of reach from any trying to get at it. They needed a way up there. They needed to be able to fly.

Braxis cried out as a swipe sent him flying. He barely hung onto his staff as he crashed near Sora and Kairi. Sora stared at the staff and a light went on in his head. "Can you cast Aero?" When Braxis nodded, a little confused, Sora explained his plan. While the normal spell created a wind shield, maybe they could use it to propel him up on the creature's back.

"It might work, but we'd need two people to work the spell on a third. Preferably someone light," Braxis shouted over another roar, indicating Kairi.

"Me?" Kairi looked more than a little petrified. "You want to try this plan out, something you haven't done before, on me?"

Sora allowed a quick glance over Braxis's shoulder, making sure his new friends were still okay before turning to Kairi. "You wanted to be more involved in the fighting," he teased.

"Involved, yes. But if you miss, I'm going to be falling fast with no way to stop myself."

"We'll take good care of you," Braxis said. "If we don't, I doubt any of us will live to regret it."

Those words were ice water on Sora's soul and Kairi nodded, a little afraid. "Here," Sora said, handing the Ultima Weapon to her, the blue and gold gleaming. "Use both at the same time to inflict as much damage as you can before he can react."

She took it from him tentatively, very unused to the weight, and Sora clapped his hands on her shoulders. "You can do this."

Kairi nodded, holding both Keyblades close to her body as Braxis and Sora began casting. Wind whipped around her body, her hat flying off as she lifted off the ground, hovering momentarily. Sora felt the strains of draining his magic like this, and he had to focus only on what he was doing, not having any idea if Robin and Little John were still fighting. Kairi shot upward from the spell, soaring into the air. She flew toward the Heartless Lion, and he heard Braxis shout "Now!" They moved the wind with her, and let her drop. Kairi shrieked at first, but she brought both Keyblades in front of her, slicing at the back of Prince John right before she landed. She wasn't attacking with any kind of skill the way she would have with only hers, but Prince John roared in pain, trying to shake her loose from the attack.

She struggled to keep her balance and Sora worried she'd fall off, but she readjusted, even jumping to stay on as she cut him up. There was a high-pitched whine and a loud pop, and then the darkness faded under Kairi's feet. She hadn't expected that, and she fell backwards, both Keyblades falling from her grasp. Sora was moving in an instant, racing across the grass and he leapt, catching her and they landed in a heap, Sora on top of Kairi. "Who says I can't plan?" Sora teased.

"So you got lucky. Big deal." But she was smiling and he felt a thrill from it that he couldn't describe. "Uhm...Sora?"

"Yeah, Kairi?"

"You can get off me now..."

She shoved him back and he let himself fall, feeling completely embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Kairi..." He hadn't wanted to get up, had wanted to kiss her right then and there, no matter who was watching. He'd never felt this way before, even when he'd wanted to share a paopu with her. He just knew he wanted to hold her and never let her go again.

Kairi gave a soft grin, but she also looked a little uncertain and Sora kicked himself for making her feel awkward. Thankfully, Little John broke in and cut through the tension as he congratulated Kairi for taking the beast down. Sora grinned as Kairi gave him a pleading look for help. _Let her enjoy the glory for once. She's earned it._

Suddenly, he remembered Braxis and whirled around, but the panther was gone and not a trace of him remained. "Too bad," he muttered, "I would have liked to thank him for the help." He knew it couldn't have lasted, but for the briefest of time, he'd been a useful ally.

Sora heard a little sniveling and turned to see Prince John trying to crawl away from the others before anyone noticed. _So he survived all that._ Sora was content to let him run with his tail between his legs. Robin, however, was not and gave chase, but a large lion in armor got to him first. "B...Brother...welcome back..." Prince John tried to say, forgetting he still wore the crown, which the older lion snatched off the coward's head. Robin and Little John had both dropped to one knee and bowed and Sora felt he should do the same as both he and Kairi bowed. "I...I didn't expect you back so...so soon, Richard," Prince John stammered.

"Indeed." The true king placed the crown on his head. "I've heard quite a bit about what you've been up to in my absence. Now, do tell me where I can find Marian." And Richard gave a toothy grin, brandishing his fangs, that scared Prince John into a faint.

* * *

Kairi was still absorbing the whirlwind of events that had happened since the arrival of the King back from the Crusades. After Prince John came to, he led them to the secret room that he'd stashed Marian in. Robin had been overjoyed and alternatively professed his love and apologized for not showing up sooner. He'd hardly let her stray from his sight since, and the two began planning their wedding. Prince John, Sir Hiss, and the Sheriff had been sent to prison, along with the Sheriff's two vulture henchman, for their treason against the crown. Most of the rhino guards had either fled or made amends with the King. The Heartless and Soulless had slipped into the darkness for now, though Kairi was sure they'd be back. And no one had seen a whisper of Braxis since the fight. The panther had vanished back to wherever he'd come from. At least, that's what she thought. He'd had no reason to stay and be caught.

She stared at her reflection, scowling at the dress she'd been stuck in. Wedding or no, she still didn't like that she had to be in a dress in this realm and she longed for the green outfit she'd had for some time here. At least it wasn't the billowy one she'd been stuck in when she'd first arrived. The main bodice of the dress was pale blue, with a silver under-bust corset that hugged her form. The sleeves were the same silver and they were fitted to the elbow before billowing outward to the wide and draping cuffs. The skirt was the same pale blue on the sides and back with a silver panel in the front. And pale silver edging along the hem. It flared out from the hip so it didn't cling to her, then hung down nearly to the ground with small vertical folds that opened up when she walked and spread in a graceful circle when she spun.

The headpiece she had with it fitted around her brow, with holes for her ears to poke through. It rose up several inches, then curved around the sides with the shape of her head. It was higher on the sides than in the front and back where it had a gentle curved drop. It was also silver with a pale blue veil that was attached at the brow and draped over the top to hang halfway down her back.

She brushed the fabric of the skirt, trying to make it feel right to her, but nothing seemed to make her happy and she finally gave up in frustration and sprang to her feet, knocking over the chair in the process.

In truth, it wasn't the dress that was bothering her and she knew it. Without a gummi ship, they had no way to leave this world until someone found them, and while she appreciated their generosity and hospitality, she missed her other friends. It also delayed any chance she had of finding the people responsible for this whole mess and stopping them before they attacked someone else.

And then there was Riku. He was another part of her worry. Not only did she wonder if he was alright, but she also feared what was growing in her heart. Being around Sora lately was bringing up some pretty strong feelings, ones she wanted to pursue at times, but she also had some of those same feelings for Riku and she felt she'd be betraying him if she acted on them with Sora. It had built a level of confusion and frustration in her that only practicing with the Keyblade could bring down.

Namine was also an ever-present feeling in her mind, though it got no stronger than a whisper. She knew her Nobody was out there, the other part of her self searching to become whole with her again. She asked if Sora felt Roxas at all, and he said no. She wondered why her connection was stronger with her Nobody. It was another question she could not answer.

Lastly, she missed seeing herself in the mirror. Being a lioness had been fun for a while, but she missed her true face staring back at her. She couldn't get used to the idea that this proud creature was the same person she was inside.

A soft knock came at the door. "Kairi? Are you decent?"

"Come in, Sora," she said, turning to face him. He was wearing a fine, white linen shirt, lace dripping from the cuffs, silver laces at the neck, loosely tied. Over top he wore a forest green top, trimmed in more silver, and embroidered along the edges with tiny, silver leaves and vines. A simple white cap sat between his fox ears. He had kept the silver chain with the crown on it. A soft flush came to her cheeks at seeing him like this. "Is it time?" she asked to cover up her feelings.

Sora gave her a goofy grin, then nodded, snapping out of his brief daydream. "Yeah. We better hurry down. We don't want to be late for the ceremony." He bowed and crooked his elbow, acting the perfect gentleman.

"Wow, someone's been teaching the scrawny kid I grew up with some manners," she teased.

"Hey!" Sora blushed and she knew she was right. It was kind of sweet that he had gone to the trouble for it.

There was another knock and a soft clearing of a throat. Robin stood in the doorway, decked out in his formal wear. A long-sleeved white silk shirt, with layers of lace at the cuffs, topped by a forest green tunic with a high collar, clasped at the throat with a gold, circle pin, engraved with tiny arrows and birds. The tunic itself was embroidered much as Sora's was, with a pattern of vines and leaves around the edges, in a deeper shade of green than the tunic itself. This was belted with a brown leather belt, with a gold clasp. His green, feathered cap sat between his ears, adorned now with an elegant, white feather. Kairi gave him a quizzical look. "Shouldn't you be getting ready for something important?"

"Yes, M'lady, but I figured I wouldn't get another chance to give this to you afterward." He handed her a small box bound in fur dyed a mixture of purple and red. "A little gift in thanks for all you've done."

"Robin...I can't accept this. I would have helped for nothing."

He placed it in her paw, not taking no for an answer. "Think of it as my contribution to helping a Keyblade wielder become the best she can be." Kairi opened it and saw a keychain inside with a small green leaf at the end. "There have always been texts of those who wield the Keyblades and what will follow them. But I believe that you are using them for good and I am glad to be able to help. I believe the Oo-de-lally will be in good hands with you, Princess." Kairi smiled, clasping the keychain. For the first time, she didn't mind what he'd called her.

"Sora. I read something else in the texts that might help. There is a legend that says that the Keyblade Master can bridge worlds through his heart. I hope this helps you continue your quest." He handed a set of leather-bound papers to Sora, then clasped Sora's paw in his own and Kairi's in the other. "I am truly glad to have met you both. Because of you, I was able to find Marian again."

"You would have found her eventually," Kairi said, "Love finds a way." Robin smiled, gave a bow, and ducked out of the room.

Sora watched her as she stared down at the keychain in her hand. "Go on. I know you want to try it out. I remember feeling the same way when I first got a new one."

Kairi willed her Keyblade into existence, not sure what to expect. Part of her had grown attached to the original design and would be sad to see it go. However, she unattached the paopu chain and attached the Oo-de-lally to the Keyblade. Where the chain attached sprouted another leaf, and the hand guard turned wooden. Vines wrapped around the shaft in arcs of two shades of green on opposite sides of the shaft until it reached the Key portion as the shaft of the blade changed immediately, going from golden wood to sturdier, stronger, darker wood. The flowers vanished and in its place were sharp thorns that angled out from the arc of the vine. Leaves sprouted out in certain places from the shaft, the arcs, even the thorns. Two small leaves, no bigger than the one on the Keychain, emerged from the tip of blade.

Kairi felt the power from the Keyblade almost immediately. Sora grinned, staring at it. "Wow...pretty neat Kairi."

She swung it around, getting a feel for it. It was sturdier, though a bit heavier than her first, which meant it could do more damage. She sent it away, not wanting to ruin her dress for the ceremony. "What do you think he meant about bridging worlds with your heart?"

"I dunno, but I think we should try. It beats sitting around here."

Kairi was glad he felt the same way. "Let's do it then."

The ceremony was a beautiful wedding. Maid Marian looked stunning in her white dress and Kairi could tell everyone had hoped for this outcome between the two. The roguish Robin Hood had won over the people with his desire to keep them free, no matter the cost, and his devotion to Marian was obvious. Though they'd been apart since they were younger, their love had never died. It made Kairi think of the time she'd lost while Riku and Sora were gone. Maybe...maybe she hadn't lost her chances after all.

Robin and Marian raced out of the church, hurrying to the carriage that awaited them. On her way, Marian tossed the bouquet and it landed shockingly in Kairi's lap, causing her to go beet red and avoid looking around as people cheered again. She chose to focus on the carriage as it dwindled away into the afternoon sun, coached by Little John and a young boy named Skippy. _At least we helped someone find happiness._ Until her own journey ended, hers would have to wait.

She let the crowd disperse, making small talk with Friar Tuck, who assured her they would always be welcome if they chose to stay. She politely declined, saying they had to make their way home. She didn't want to say too much, not sure how much Robin and Little John had told the others about her and Sora.

It was late in the day when Kairi and Sora were finally able to extract themselves from the peasants who felt the need to shower them with praise as well. Kairi kept deflecting it to Robin Hood, but her modesty was put to the test by the amount of congratulations they were getting. She felt like she was floating when they made their way to a large open field. She had never felt so accomplished before. They had both changed back into the green outfits they'd had while in Robin Hood's group, the other outfits not made for fighting.

Sora sat on the ground and crossed his legs as best he could. He had been studying the area Robin marked for him in the papers and to bridge the worlds required deep concentration. Kairi watched him as he sat, unmoving, and she fidgeted back and forth, antsy. _Should it take this long?_ She wasn't sure how long he was sitting there, but she was glad for the light breeze that helped keep her cool in the sunlight.

After a long wait and three different position changes, Sora's eyes snapped open. He gasped and panted, his shoulders heaved and a light shot from his chest. Color flared into existence: blues, reds and purples mingling to create a doorway to a road made of multiple colors. It shone with an ethereal light that sparkled all around. The portal itself looked as though it was created by a mirage of heat, hazy and shifting in the air. Sora stood, needing Kairi's help to stay upright. She stared, making sure he wasn't going to collapse. Though he wasn't physically tied to the doorway anymore, he looked like he was still drained.

"Are you sure we should do this?" she asked. She was anxious to get back into the fray, but not at his expense.

"I'll be alright. I just...need a minute." He kept his paws on his knees, sucking in air for a bit. Kairi thought she saw a shadow out of the corner of her eye and stood up, drawing her Keyblade. There was nothing in the field but the portal, though, and she dismissed it again. _Must be the after-effect of such a long battle... _She turned back to Sora, who hadn't noticed the exchange at all "I didn't expect it to hurt so much..." He stood, wiping his forehead. "But I'm okay."

"Let's go then before it closes." She helped him through the portal, her skin tingling for a moment, and then she felt the solid ground of the rainbow road underneath her. Sora breathed in, perking up, and Kairi watched as the portal closed on Sherwood Forest. Once it was completely shut, Sora seemed back to his old self again.

"So...Sora...how do we change back?" Sora's eyes widened and Kairi realized he hadn't thought of that. "You didn't have a plan?"

He shook his head. "I forgot. Donald's magic usually transformed us back and forth. I don't know what we're going to do. Maybe we'll find someone on the other side who knows how?" Kairi smacked her forehead.

There was a small rush and light swirled around Kairi's body. The magic wrapped her up in its warm embrace and rushed through her. When she opened her eyes, she was staring at her human hands again and was back in her old outfit from the Islands, the pink dress that hugged her form. She didn't have time to ask Sora how it had happened. "Or allow someone who knows of magic's many ways to do it for you."

A figure stood just down the road, dark-skinned and wearing a much finer outfit than the one he'd been wearing while serving Prince John. He wore a burnt-amber cloak with the hood down with old fashioned gold accents and gold trim. In the center of the cloak was a sphinx done in all gold. He wore a blood red silk shirt done in the old-fashioned style with a low v-necked collar and puffy sleeves that were held in check by a button at the wrist. His slacks were brown and a little loose and covered brown leather boots. He wore black gloves with a silver trim on them and had a gold chain with the odd Soulless design around his neck. There was no mistaking that voice though. "Braxis..." Kairi brought out her Keyblade again, ready for a fight. "I thought I saw someone around the portal."

"Yes, well, my way home was not available either," he said, sweeping out his cloak in dramatic fashion. Kairi wasn't impressed and neither was Sora. Braxis held up his hands, his staff vanishing to prove his point. "I'm not here to fight, Keyblade wielders. This is not the place for such things."

Kairi held herself at the ready. "We should trust you? You tried to kill us."

"No, my job was only to contain, not destroy," he sighed. "Restin put me in charge to keep watch over you. That was all. However, I didn't know he planned to remove me in the process."

"So what are you planning now?"

"An alliance. Temporary, of course, until I can find my way home. Restin is after you two as well, and anything that hinders him is along with my plans." Braxis kept himself still, trying to look as unthreatening as possible. "Besides, you intrigue me."

"What do you mean?" Sora asked, lowering his Keyblade. Kairi was not so forgiving, but she had no doubt Sora's skill would allow him to recover.

"You could have let the Soulless tear me apart," he said to Kairi, staring out from under his black hair, "and yet, you risked your own safety to help me. You included an enemy in your plans, and even gave me a chance to recover my magic. It was extraordinarily foolish thing to do and I have never known someone to do so. And yet, it worked. It is a puzzle I must unlock. I wish to see more of you, Keyblade Masters. I wish to learn your secrets of strength, and if I must join you to do so, then that is what I will do. I will join you until I am ready to face you again."

Kairi could not believe the arrogance oozing from him. The idea of his that he could just come along as though nothing had happened. And yet, there was something genuine about his words. Kairi's own Keyblade faltered and she glanced at Sora. "Well?"

Sora shrugged, his Keyblade vanishing. He put his hands behind his head in typical fashion. "I think you can beat him up if he tries anything." He gave Kairi one of his patented grins.

"Sora! I'm serious!"

"So am I," he said. "Look, we might be able to handle whatever comes our way, but I've learned the more friends you can make, the better off you are. And if he tries anything, we stop him."

_It's never that simple._ She doubted she could convince Sora of that right now, and they were wasting time in an unstable area. Once they reached the next world, she intended to pull him aside for a severe tongue-lashing. Sora had gone over to welcome Braxis to the group, but Kairi's eyes met the dark skinned man's own green ones. She held up the Keyblade, a silent threat more powerful than her words could ever be, then let it vanish as she went to join the two of them.

* * *

**Space**

Namine's eyes widened and she bolted upright in her chair. "I've lost her."

"What do you mean?" Roxas asked, turning to face her.

Namine shook her head, trying to think of how to describe what she just felt. "One second, I could feel her consciousness. The next it just...blinked out. As though it hadn't been there to begin with."

"Is she...?" Riku's voice was strained and he half-turned from the pilot's seat to look back

Namine shook her head. "I don't think so. There'd have been more pain before I lost her if that was the case." In truth, she didn't know what to think, but she didn't want Riku to panic right now. _And if you should find out the worst later? _She didn't want to answer that question. Not now. _Please come back Kairi. Give me something good to say._ She didn't give voice to her own fears. No need to make the others worry more. "She's just gone."

"So what do we do now?" Roxas asked, clenching a fist in his opposite hand before leaning on it.

"We stay on course," Riku said. "We can't go gallivanting around and hope to run into them. We keep going to Radiant Garden and see if Cid has found anything on this Restin guy."

Roxas didn't say anything, but Namine could see the blonde boy tensing. She wasn't sure what it was about these two that rubbed each other the wrong way, but she wished she could get them to stop acting like anything the other said was a personal insult. They had more in common than they cared to admit.

It didn't help that Namine was getting antsy as well. Twice they'd had to stave off Heartless attacks on the way to Radiant Garden and both times it had caused a delay. The in-between times were even worse. Riku was piloting, so he had to be focused, but Roxas didn't have the courage to say much to her. It was obvious he was thinking about her and some other time it might have been cute. However, if she couldn't keep up a conversation with him, she was left alone with her own worries.

She had tried to focus in on the feeling of Kairi when they'd first left the Islands, hoping to be able to draw Kairi and, by doing so, find out where she was. Nothing had come onto the page. She'd blamed the weak connection at first, hoping that if it strengthened, her power would as well. But even as Kairi felt stronger, she still couldn't draw anything about her other half. She hadn't admitted it to the others, but she wondered if she'd be any good at all now. If that part of her power wasn't working, she might not have any magic in her.

That led to a fear that as Kairi got strong enough, she'd simply fade away. It was stupid and irrational, given she had to be with Kairi the last time to join back with her, but she couldn't shake it. It wasn't becoming part of Kairi that bothered her, either. She wasn't supposed to be here at all. It was the thought that it would happen when she was needed with the others that shook her to the core.

A soft fizz and a pop from the console near her brought her away from those troubled musings. She slid over, hearing another fizz, and she tapped on the glass a bit. Sparks sprayed from it and Namine threw herself back as smoke and fire began to pour from the terminal. She gasped and stepped aside as Roxas raced by, covering it up to kill the fire before it got out of control.

"Namine! Are you okay?" Roxas asked.

"Fine, just hurt my pride. That's all." She dusted herself off, coughing a bit. "Riku, I think we took more damage from that last fight than we thought! Might want to check around and see if anything else is going to blow on us."

Riku did a check to make sure no Heartless were in the area, then set the gummi ship on auto-pilot and got up. The three of them methodically checked each system for damage. "Donald's gonna kill me," Riku muttered as Namine walked by.

Namine gave him a brief smile. "Don't worry. If what I know of Cid is correct, he'll be able to fix it up in no time."

"Assuming we make it there in one piece," Roxas said as he slumped against the wall. "If the Heartless don't take us out, this bucket of parts may come apart on its own."

"Do you have a better idea for getting to Radiant Garden?" Riku asked.

"...no." Namine knew Roxas was used to traveling by portal, not through space.

"Then we make due with this." Riku turned, then cursed as he hurried back to the controls, leaping over the back of the chair. Alarms started blaring and he shut down the auto-pilot as the cabin shook, knocking Roxas and Namine off their feet. "Heartless! Dead ahead!" He cursed as he pulled the ship into a dive, trying to outmaneuver the new threat. He brought the ship into a spin, bouncing Namine's head against her seat and she gripped it to keep control, her other hand holding onto her dress. "What hole did they pop out of? They weren't there a minute ago."

Namine put a death grip on the chair as Riku went through his evasion, bouncing her about the cabin until he leveled off long enough for her to crawl in and buckle herself down. She rubbed her forehead, feeling a welt grow and she glanced at Roxas, who was looking a bit green. Namine's stomach wasn't feeling so stable either.

"I think...I got them," Riku said, giving a soft chuckle. His mirth was short-lived as the cabin rocked twice. Namine squealed and gripped her seat and the cabin was filled with sirens. Riku threw the ship upward, yelling at the controls, but Namine couldn't hear him over the blaring.

"Namine!" Roxas yelled over his shoulder. "The shields are weakening! Can you do anything on your end to strengthen them?" The cabin rumbled again and she caught a glimpse of a Heartless ship disintegrating as she turned, trying to pull up the information on the console in front of her. The image came up, then shuddered and the screen went blank. She cursed.

She fought to try and get anything up on her screen, but it remained dead. "I've got nothing!" The cabin shuddered weakly as one Heartless ship exploded too close to the gummi ship. "Roxas, try and reroute power from other unnecessary systems!"

He slammed the console. "Something's been damaged! It's not responding!"

"Keep trying! I've almost shook this last one!" Riku cried out, but as he spun again, the gummi ship listed. It rocked backwards and the Heartless ship slammed into theirs. The shields collapsed as the ship exploded and Namine's world shifted as the room spun out of control. "We've lost one of the engines! Hang on! I'm gonna try and get us down safely!"

Namine was confused, then she could see a world coming up. It was Radiant Garden. Riku fought with the controls, but the panel in front of him erupted and he cried out, trying to shield his face. The alarms were inconsequential now and Namine knew they were in trouble as Riku fell forward and didn't move. Roxas leapt out of his seat, trying to help steady things, and Namine unbuckled herself, ran over and worked her magic to try and heal Riku.

"Steering's unresponsive! So are the other systems!" Roxas called. Namine glanced up, seeing Radiant Garden on the screen coming closer and closer with no way to slow down. They were going to get to the Garden, all right. They were going to crash right into it.


	6. Chapter 5

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 5: The Swirling Sands**

**Radiant Garden**

Riku dragged himself up and out from the wreckage, gripping Roxas's unconscious form as he made his way to the light. Riku felt it couldn't be more fitting that someone who had spent so much time in darkness was so desperate to find his way to light and safety. It mirrored his pursuit since returning to the islands, but at least this time, he could see the finish line.

What he couldn't see was Namine through the smoke and sparks and he hoped that she made it out on her own. He didn't want to have to fight through the loose wires and small fires to go back to her. He was only praying they all got out before the gummi ship took a turn for the worse and exploded.

He slowed, coughing as he inhaled a large amount of smoke. He rested for a moment, wiping sweat from his brow. The strain was more than he expected. _Damn it, Roxas. You're heavier than you look. _He gripped the boy's wrist, pulling him close so he could wrap his arm around Roxas's waist. "One last leg of the race, kid." He coughed into his left shoulder, then gripped one of the metal rods. He braced his feet, putting most of his weight on his right as he hoisted Roxas up over his head, yelling with the strain. He came within inches of lifting him high enough, but his strength gave out and Roxas came crashing down on top of him.

"Ow..." he muttered, rolling over the body and sighing. "I can't do it..." he said, trying to think of another way out.

"Riku?" Namine's voice floated down from the opening above, her face cutting out the light. "Are you there?"

"You are a sight for sore eyes," he said, laughing, "And arms."

"Is Roxas with you?"

"Yeah, but he's out cold. If I lift him up, can you take him the rest of the way?"

"I think so," she said.

Riku could hear the determination in her voice, as well as the uncertainty. Unfortunately, he didn't have time to try and assuage her fears. Any second wasted might be the last. "Alright, I'm going to send him up. Tell me when you've got a grip. Pull him as best you can, and I'll try and help as I climb up. Ready?"

"Yeah," she said and Riku lifted Roxas again, his muscles straining, complaining that this was too much stress over too short a time. He ignored it, stretching himself out to give Namine a better chance at reaching him.

Hands slipped under Roxas's arms. "I've...got him." Namine sounded like she was struggling not to fall herself, but all Riku needed was for her to take him a bit until he could get up the rods himself. He could hear her puffing and wheezing, but as he climbed, he stopped every chance he could to help push or steady Roxas for her.

It was a slow, arduous process, and Riku felt like he could hear a clock ticking down to when things might go haywire inside. He was thankful when they got Roxas out of the hole and Riku gripped both sides of it, ignoring the pain as the metal sliced into his hands, and pulled himself out too.

"Riku, your hands. They're bleeding."

"Worry about that later," he said, grabbing Roxas and throwing him over his shoulder. His legs threatened to buckle, but he took Namine's hand and hurried her off the gummi ship. Once he deemed they were far enough away, he set Roxas down on the sand, then collapsed on his butt, staring at the hunk of twisted shapes sticking out of the ground. "Yeah, Donald is definitely going to kill me..."

Magic washed over him and he was aware that Namine had kneeled down next to him, her hands glowing as she healed his wounds. She was strained herself and when she stopped, there was still some scarring on his palms from where he'd torn them up. "I'm sorry, Riku...I thought I had more energy than that..."

"It's alright," he said, glancing around. "We need to find some shelter..." Riku was finally seeing their surroundings for the first time, and all he saw in any direction was sand. _I didn't even know they had a desert here._ There was no shelter from the blistering heat, nor any sign of where to go.

"We should go back to the ship for now," Namine said, wiping the sweat away.

"It's too dangerous to be over there."

"Riku, if we don't find some shade out here, it won't matter either way. We need to give Roxas some time and we're better off where we can be cooler."

Riku didn't want to admit it, but she was right. "Give it a few more minutes, and if there isn't any reaction from the ship, we'll head down. If something happens with the circuitry, I want it to happen while we're away from it." Namine didn't argue with him there and he could see she was just as worried about it as he was. Her face showed a strain he'd never seen from her, and most people would not have noticed, but Riku had seen it before. A tightening of the jawline here, or a quick weary glance there. She was not used to exerting herself like this. The time to rest was as much for her as it was for Roxas.

The blazing heat didn't get much cooler by the smoky remains of the ship, but Riku was determined to make Namine comfortable. She positioned Roxas in the coolest portion of the shadows and Riku, after checking to make sure he could navigate in and out, slipped back in through the hole in the ship to see if any of the provisions survived the crash.

Most of what he found was unusable, but he did find one of the units still intact. He opened it up, sorted through the jumbled mess and smiled when he found some of the food in one of the compartments. He glanced around, hoping he could find something they could use for canteens. The only water would have to come from ship's water system itself.

All he could manage were a few mangled bottles, and they wouldn't stay cool for long in this heat. "It'll have to do," he muttered to himself, packing up what he could.

He and Namine shared some of the food, and by the time Roxas woke up, the sun was to the west instead of directly overhead, though the heat hadn't diminished by much. "Are you alright?" Namine asked, rushing to his side and tending to him, her strength having returned some. Riku felt a twinge of jealousy as he watched the two of them together. As much as he tried to deny it, he wished Kairi would look at him that way. Sora had always been better with Kairi in that regard, and he'd resorted to bravado and childish games to try and keep his place by her side.

When the battle with Xehanort ended and they were back on the islands, he hoped that maybe there was still a place for him in her heart. He'd never gotten an answer to that question. Kairi hadn't treated him any differently, and while he thought he caught her looking at him longer than normal, or staying in his arms when he caught her fall just a little too long, he was certain it was only his hormones playing games with his mind and he hadn't the courage to try and ask her for more. Not after everything he'd done. They might have forgiven him, but he was still a long way off before he truly forgave himself.

He knelt down by them both, clearing his throat a little and breaking up what might turn into something mushy. He wasn't sure he could handle that, nor was it the time or place to do so. "If you're up to it once you get some food in you, I'd like to see what's over those dunes." He showed Roxas what he was looking at.

"Wandering around out here is a good way to get lost," Namine chided.

"I'm not saying we should leave completely. I just want to see if there is anything to be seen. Something we can guide ourselves to."

"He's right," Roxas said, his voice weak. "We can't stay and hope someone wanders by."

Namine bit her lip, but she nodded. "But only if you're up to it. You took a nasty bump to the head when you rebounded off the console. I've healed a little, but you need rest more than anything."

"I'll be fine," Roxas snapped, holding his hand to his head. "I mean...I can handle myself, Namine."

Namine cringed back. Riku wondered what got into Roxas, but he didn't have the time to waste standing around and trying to figure it out. "Let's go," he said, trudging through the sand.

The dunes turned out to be further away than Riku first realized. He'd been fooled by the mirage in the heat and by the time they reached them, he was winded and took a minute, resting his hands on his knees. Roxas was on his right and he took a knee in the sand, staring straight ahead, his white top drenched in sweat. Namine had the worst of it. The black outfit clung to her petite form and she nearly collapsed as she crashed ungraciously to the ground, gasping for air. Of the three, she had the least training or experience and her dark clothing was not giving her any respite from the furnace of heat..

"H...how...do you...two...stand it?" She ran an arm along her brow, then fanned herself weakly. "This heat...it's...unbearable..."

"Try running around in it wearing a long black cloak and destroying Heartless," Roxas said, smiling.

Namine looked confused, but Riku knew what Roxas was talking about. "Agrabah." He sat down, remembering his own mission Maleficent had given him there. "At least on that world there were buildings to provide shade."

"Yeah, but fighting there took its toll."

Namine interrupted. "What's that all the way out there?" She was pointing far to Riku's left and he thought she was seeing things at first, but when he squinted, he could see a formation just showing out of the sand. "Think it might be something we can use for shelter?"

"I think so," Riku replied. "We shouldn't stay here long. I'd rather get there before darkness falls."

"Don't they say you should travel at night in the desert?" Roxas asked, puffing.

"Without any canteens? We need to find shelter from the sun as soon as possible."

Roxas sighed, his hands on his knees. "Alright, but we need to at least stop for a minute." He gave a small nod at Namine, who was hanging her head over her trembling legs.

Riku nodded. He was amazed she could still stand, but he didn't want to stay here and bake either. "Agreed. Enough to get our breath back at least."

As the sun headed for the horizon, they reached the formation of rocks they'd seen before. They were large enough for shelter and formed a pseudo-canyon as they walked through. All three were sweaty and exhausted, but they'd found a safe place. Or so they thought.

Chilling laughter bounced off the rocks and several strange creatures popped up out of the sand, surrounding the trio. They had swirls for eyes and had a checkerboard of white and black on the body. They danced and swayed around the group, but the claws they had for hands were menacing enough.

Weapons were drawn by Riku and friends, preparing for the attack, but they seemed content to keep the group in the center and a shadow spilled down from a figure at the end of the passage. A high-pitched cackle echoed off the stones, growing higher pitched with each subsequent volley from the laughing figure. "Well, well, looks like a couple of heroes have fallen into a sand pit. You three look positively boiling. Allow me to lead you to a much colder place." He laughed again, a strange mirth to his mad words, and he stepped closer and out of the shadows. "But don't worry. Death's embrace won't hurt...much!"

The middle-aged man was dressed in green robes with gold trim with red silk shirt and pants underneath. He looked lithe but somewhat fragile, not a strong fighter by any means. His blonde hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail and had a white feather extending from it. The most glaring feature was the white makeup all over his face, except at the eyes where a deep red circled them and had three small spikes of red protruding from those circles, two toward each matching ear and one that went down toward his cheeks. His lips were also a bright-red, making a garish mask for his face.

Riku wasn't sure if he should be afraid or laugh. _He looks like a psychotic clown,_ he thought. He held the Way to Dawn steady, ready to show the joker that he'd messed with the wrong group.

"We're not going to die that easily." Roxas said, glancing between the creatures, then swung at one. The creature moved faster than Riku expected, dodging under the blade and rolling up, gripping Roxas's arm from underneath, flipping him over onto the sand and taking a small chunk from his arm in the process. Roxas cried out, dropping the Keyblade and clutching the wound.

"There's nothing like the sound of a scream of agony. Almost musical..." He chortled, staring at the group. "And the Whimsies are so good in bringing them out." His footsteps crunched under the sand as he slowly approached. "I don't want you to die easy. I want it to be slow...and painful. I want it to last!" He snapped his fingers and the creatures raced in.

Roxas ducked under one as it raced by, scooping up his Keyblade and turning to attack. Riku felt a cold rush behind him. Namine must have cast one of Blizzard's forms because she gave a quick cheer, then cursed as the spell apparently didn't do what she wanted. Riku had no time to check on her as he wielded The Way to Dawn with expertise, trying to eliminate them before those claws could be put to good use. However, they were incredibly speedy, dodging attacks before Riku could even complete the motion. He was good enough to avoid serious damage, but he took a few cuts on the way. He needed to end this fast. The long walk they'd taken had stolen a lot of his energy.

Namine screamed, falling back into Riku. He spun, steadying her, and saw her clutching her stomach, blood leaking between her fingers. Roxas hurried to her, the battle forgotten for a moment as he held onto her. "Yes, yes! Bleed! Let the red flow until you're all screaming for the end!" Riku grit his teeth, the clown getting on his nerves.

He stared around at the Whimsies, dancing around, taunting them from just outside his reach. It was only a moment before they'd attack again, following this madman's wild ideas of torture. He couldn't allow that. They had to have a weakness. They were great at dodging individual attacks, and he didn't have the energy to throw a spell that would hit them all.

_There's always that new attack I've been practicing._ It couldn't make things any worse and he was running out of options. He whispered back to Roxas. "Keep her low to the ground..." He watched Roxas long enough to see him nod before he stood, gripping the blade with both hands as he lifted it straight in the air. Dark energy danced between his fingers and then to the hilt and up the blade until the entire weapon burned black and red. He brought it down quickly, slicing in an arc and spinning on his heel in a circle. The energy blasted from the tip of the Way to Dawn, hitting everything in its path.

He sunk to his knees after he completed his circuit, spent. His Nocturne Slash had taken months to set up and learn, but it had been extremely effective. He didn't see a single Whimsy around. "When'd you learn that move?" Roxas asked. "You didn't have that when we fought."

Riku didn't get a chance to respond as the man began clapping. Riku cursed, thinking he'd got him too. He didn't suppose it mattered. The man was frail. Even weakened, they should be a match for him. "I suppose I should have expected nothing less from two-bit heroes who have an overblown sense of their self-importance." He cackled again, the arrogance and egocentrism of his attitude oozing through. "But you aren't going to stop my fun. I said you were going to suffer, and I mean it! I'll paint the sand with your blood!" Riku saw him ready the powerful fire spell and he pushed himself in front of the others, knowing they had no way to deflect that spell. He saw the flames coming and braced for impact.

The fire rushed toward him, then flew over the top. Riku spun, seeing the spell fly and slam into the point of a sword, the magic swirling down to the hilt and vanishing. A blonde woman held the sword. She was dressed in green and white armor with a long white cloak and blue boots. She wore a blue headband under her long blonde hair. She sat on the back of a large yellow bird that was saddled and she was staring daggers at their attacker.

The clown giggled. "If it isn't my favorite traitor. Come to join the bloodbath? I'm sure my friends would love to include you." Dark portals opened and closed, bringing more Whimsies to the party. Riku grimaced. They may have a new ally, but one more person wasn't going to tip the scales, not unless she could take down the whole army by herself. And the man did not seem very scared of her. "Did you bring my little pet back to me? I'd like to add her to the body count as well."

"Terra couldn't make it. But I brought another friend with me." She gestured with two fingers and there was a recurring clunking noise. Arrows flew at an alarming rate from an elevated position and the Whimsies fell in quick succession, disappearing back to the darkness from which they spawned.

The clown snarled, then shook his finger at her. "You think that sand-rat who calls himself royalty can stop me?" He looked from the woman to the trio and then up on the rocks. "I'll be back and his precious Figaro castle is going to be the first of many tombs." Dust swept up and around him. Arrows flew into the cloud, but when the dust settled, he was gone.

Riku stood, scratching his head. He had the feeling they'd walked into the middle of a war they knew nothing about. It wouldn't be the first time, but he hadn't expected it to be here on Radiant Garden. The woman came over, dismounted and leaned over Namine. Roxas tensed a little, but she simply held out her hand, healing the wound on Namine's stomach. "I figure you three must be exhausted. Leon said to keep an eye out for you after the computer said you crashed. We weren't sure where you'd gone down. Unfortunately, Kefka found you first."

"But thankfully we got here in time to help out." A man rode down to meet them, a strange-looking crossbow slung across his back. His hair was also blonde, pulled into a ponytail like Kefka's was, which was held by two blue ribbons. He wore dark green armor and a long blue cape with yellow trim. His deep-blue eyes roamed over the group, stopping on Namine. He jumped down to the sand, walking over and kneeling in front of her. "Especially as I was able to save such a pretty desert flower."

Namine blushed, staring at her hands, and Roxas fumed just a few feet away. The woman pushed the man over. "Really, Edgar? Out here?"

The man brushed himself off as he stood. "You're right Celes. I let my entrancement with her beauty get the best of me."

"If it's a woman and she's old enough, you're entranced," Celes said. "Go get the other Chocobo and let's return to Figaro Castle. I'd rather not wait around to see whether Kefka has any other nasty tricks waiting for us."

"Cold as ice," Edgar said, chuckling, as he took Namine's hand and kissed it. He stood and walked off, Namine staring at him all the way.

Riku coughed, then held out his hand to Celes. "Thank you for helping us."

Celes stared at him, then shook it. "Think nothing of it. We are honored to help the heroes of the Keyblades, even if two of them are only represented by Shades for now." Roxas bristled but Riku held up his hand. Celes flushed a little, glancing at Roxas. "I apologize. I didn't mean to be rude. However, the two of you are Nobodies, who were meant to have rejoined with Sora and Kairi. Aerith is curious as to why you've appeared again, and I must say that I want to know myself."

Namine paused, but she never got a chance to say anything as Edgar came around, leading a Chocobo around as fast as he could. "More Whimsies coming fast! We need to get going now!" He handed the reins to Roxas, turned to Namine. "Come, my lady. Let us make a hasty retreat." He wrapped her around the waist and lifted her into the saddle, then leapt up behind her. It gave a soft 'Wark' as he turned the Chocobo around and raced away on it.

Roxas glanced at Riku, who shrugged, then jumped on. Roxas followed, snapping the reins and the Chocobo shot past Celes after Edgar as Riku held onto his companion. Riku was surprised how fast the over-grown chicken could move, but if it got them away from the danger and closer to Aerith, he wasn't about to argue.

* * *

Namine felt the wind whip through her hair as she leaned back, trying not to focus too much on the passing terrain lest she get sick. Instead, she watched as the sun began to set, the colors of red and orange streaking the darkening sky, mixing together like some of her paints. She closed her eyes after a minute, just enjoying the ride. It was an incredible feeling and not as jarring as she thought it would be. It almost felt like flying.

Edgar stayed silent and alert, looking for possible danger as they rode, and it gave her time to reflect. Before, when she'd been with Organization XIII, she dreamed of meeting her prince, of finding her place in the world, of living. As she helped Sora regain his memories while he slept, she felt that dream slip away like the sands of time through her fingers. Even helping Kairi escape had only felt like something she had to do, not something of her own free will.

Now, she was having her own adventure. She was seeing and experiencing so many things all at once and it was hard to take it all in. She even got kissed by a handsome king, though only on her hand. She wanted to giggle and just pretend everything was for her. When it eventually ended back with Kairi, it wouldn't feel so empty.

"Look ahead, my lady," Edgar said as he leaned down, speaking in her ear. It gave her a small thrill to have his lips so close. She glanced ahead, seeing what he was pointing at. Rising above the dunes was a large castle with large wind turbines in two towers to either side, a sentinel in the growing darkness. As they got closer, she could see the stone used for it was weather-beaten but sturdy and she could see all types of people milling about outside, awaiting the return of the king. "That's Figaro Castle."

"Impressive," she said, her breath taken away. It was nowhere near as large as the one from The World That Never Was, but somehow the age and grit to it held a longevity that surpassed anything Xehanort had planned in his own. There was a warmth to it all that the cold halls that held Organization XIII never had. She wondered if Roxas would notice the difference too.

_Roxas..._ The thought of him made her look back at her two companions who were following close behind. She could feel her heart jumping a bit at the thought of him, and the fact that they were truly together for once was not lost on her. She hoped to get a chance to speak to him alone. There hadn't been time for it since they'd first come back to reality.

Edgar pulled the Chocobo to a stop as a guard in red and green armor walked up, smiling. "Looks like your search was successful, my liege."

Edgar hopped down, clapping the man on his shoulder guard. "Indeed it was, Redrick. And not a minute too soon."

"Well, I'm glad you're back. That bounty hunter fellow who you sent to hunt Heartless has been waiting for you to return. He needs to get back to master Cid."

"Vic's back already? That was quick." He pursed his lips, then turned to help Namine down. She took his hand, gracefully dismounting. "Though I doubt Cid would like the honorific there. Did he mention why?"

"No, my liege." Redrick glanced at the three of them. "Shall I take them to the guest quarters?"

"Not yet," Celes said, walking up to Edgar. "Aerith will want to know they're found, and if she has any questions for them, I don't want to have her wait while we bring them in."

Edgar nodded. "I'll speak with Vic personally, and then we'll prepare for departure."

"We'll be riding again so soon?" Roxas said.

Edgar chuckled. "We have other means to get you there," he said. "Just wait and see."

They were led through the castle to the throne room where Vic sat waiting on them. He was a large man, his body muscled and toned. His hair was black and spiked straight up with red spikes of hair coming from the hairline itself. His eyes, dark and soul-piercing, took in the group as they entered. He wore a casual, light green, sleeveless top and matching pants as well as brown gloves that ended at the wrist. Across his back was an impossibly large sword made from some form of black metal. It was slightly curved at the end and had two areas where the blade came out, then curved back in before finally continuing. On the blade near the hilt was a large red symbol Namine couldn't identify.

"Have fun hunting the Heartless?" Edgar asked as he made his way to the throne.

"The pay was good. Fun doesn't enter into it," Vic replied gruffly.

"You take your work too seriously," Edgar said. "I hear you need to head back to the city."

"A new job came up and it pays a lot more than going after Heartless did." He folded his arms and leaned against a pillar. Namine thought for a moment that his huge body would push right through the column.

"Never were one for small talk, were you? Ah well, I doubt we have any room to complain. You covered your share of the bargain Yuffie set for you and then some. Well, I'll send one of the guards to set you up a room. We'll be underway to the city momentarily."

Vic nodded, bowing slightly, and headed out of the throne room. As he passed the rest of the group, his eyes focused on the trio of newcomers, taking them all in for a bit as he walked by, his stride never broken as he did. The door to the throne room shut with a resounding thud and Namine shivered. Something about the way he'd looked at them didn't sit right with her. She was grateful when he was gone.

She turned back in enough time to see Edgar speaking into a video screen that seemed out of place in the old-fashioned throne room. "Can you let him know we'll be arriving soon, Aerith? I know Leon doesn't like it when Figaro arrives unannounced."

"We'll be waiting for your arrival." Aerith responded. "Was there any trouble in finding them?"

Edgar grimaced. "Kefka found them first." There was a sharp intake of breath from the monitor. "Not only that, but there are more Whimsies showing every day. Terra and Locke went to go find out what Kefka's up to. I only hope he doesn't find them first. We need as many fighters as we can get or we'll be overwhelmed out here."

"You could always come back out here."

Edgar shook his head. "I bring Figaro there and Kefka just gains more ground. We'll survive."

"At least the Heartless have grown less aggressive with these Whimsies around. And the Nobodies have gone back into hiding. It's nothing we can't handle."

Riku stepped forward. "These Whimsies might not be your only problem." He explained about the strange creatures that attacked the island and the strangers who attacked Sora and Kairi.

"King Mickey told us about Restin and his group. You're sure what attacked weren't more Whimsies?" Aerith asked.

"Positive."

Aerith frowned, lines of worry on her face. "I'll let Leon know. We need to be prepared. Edgar, we'll see you soon."

Edgar nodded. "Also, I'm bringing Vic back per his request. He has more than fulfilled his bargain and he has other ventures to attend to."

Aerith nodded. "I see," she said, her voice grave. "Well, God speed." And the screen blinked out.

Edgar rubbed his forehead. "I worry about her, Celes. The strain is showing, even through her normally calm self."

"She worries about all of us. She cares and that's important. I just don't like leaving Locke and Terra alone out here."

"I'll leave some of the soldiers behind to let them know where we've gone and to help them until we return."

Celes gave a curt nod and turned to the trio. "Let's get you settled for the trip."

Edgar perked up a bit, hurrying over to Namine. "I have a room where you can stay, my Lady. If you'll allow me," he said, offering his elbow. Namine blushed, looking back at the others for a moment before taking his arm, feeling lighter than air as he led her through the halls. He was talking to her about the history of the castle, but it was hard to hear over the beating of her heart. She was confused at this feeling. Normally she only felt this way around Roxas and now she was feeling like this around a man, albeit a charming man, she'd just met. _Maybe it's because I spent so much time as a servant of the Organization. _She didn't know, but she wasn't sure how to react. _For now, just enjoy it._

Edgar stopped and was looking at her, as if expecting something, and she realized he'd asked her a question and she had no idea what. "And you weren't paying attention..." he said, a rueful smile on his face.

"I'm sorry, your Highness, I..."

He held his hand up. "Please. Just call me Edgar."

Namine glanced down at her feet. "Edgar. I'm sorry. There's just a lot on my mind right now." She began toying with the tear in her blouse, then grimaced. She had taken this outfit from Kairi's closet, and now she'd ruined it.

Edgar took her hand. "I understand. And if you like, I can have the matron take a look at this and fix it for you."

"I'd like that," she said, smiling.

"Just set it outside the door. There are other outfits inside. We should have it fixed before we reach our friends."

Namine watched him go, then entered the room. It was elegant, fit for a princess, and Namine spun around, amazed at the feel of being allowed to stay in a room like this. It was contributing to her fantasy of meeting her prince and falling in love. She wanted to immerse herself in the room and the dream and never let it go. She pulled off the blouse and looked for a dress to wear while she waited, something frilly and soft to wear for the evening. She giggled to herself. Maybe she could convince Roxas to dance with her. Or Edgar.

_Stop that!_ _It's not your life to live._ No matter how much she wanted it, that life would never be. Her goal had to be finding Kairi and returning to her and fixing the balance. If she got distracted, she might fail and Kairi might be lost for good. Tears slipped down her cheek at the thought of this ending, but she hardened her heart and stared in the mirror. She had a job to do, even if it meant that the person who stared back at her would once again cease to exist.

* * *

Vic sat in his room, listening to the whirring of the gears in the castle walls as Figaro castle prepared to submerge beneath the sand. The monotonous sound was soothing to him and allowed him to reflect on the past day's events. He thought back to his encounter with his newest client out on the sands. The woman was gorgeous, her body curving in all the right places, red hair flowing down her back in curly waves with deep silver eyes that called out to his soul, but Vic was not one to be taken in by beauty alone. He'd been wary of her when she'd approached. He'd known people who'd tried to take him out because he'd dropped a job when he'd learned the truth about his targets. Even after returning the fee, some people felt he should finish the job regardless or die for what he knew.

So he'd kept his blade ready when she'd approached with an offer. "I hear you're the bounty hunter who only goes after those who threaten all that is good." He'd nodded. That part was very well known. It was his own personal honor code. He only took jobs that eliminated people or creatures that were evil. He followed his marks, learned the truth about them, and passed judgment on whether they were the horrible beings he'd been told of when he'd been contracted.

"What's it to you?" he'd said, a bit more gruff than he'd intended. He'd been hunting down a group of Heartless, tracking them across the sands, and she was interrupting him.

"I have a very important assignment for you. A group of betrayers and deceivers that have shaken the very foundation of the worlds. Their actions led to the destruction of a large group of people, kidnapping of several princesses and even messed with the minds of innocents. They need to be eliminated before they do more harm."

Vic had been skeptical. He'd heard the same things on more than one occasion. There were always those who tried to play to his code and the ones who did soon lived to regret it. She seemed to know what he was thinking, because she'd shrugged. "You can do your own research, but everything I've said is the truth." She'd pulled out a folder, tossing it to him. He caught it, looking inside immediately. There were files inside on his targets, a large amount of cash, and three photos. "Take it or leave it."

Vic had paused, then shrugged. "You know about my return policy?"

"Of course. Though I don't expect you to ever need to enforce it." She smiled again, and his skin had crawled. She was too sure of herself, but she didn't waver at all in dealing with him. She'd walked away, then turned back, glancing at him. "I'd be careful with them. They're masters of deception. They had to be, to destroy all they did. Don't let their looks fool you." She'd flicked her red hair back over her ear. "I'll be in touch, Vic."

The room shook, and Vic looked up from the folder by his side. He had expected to need to travel to track down the people he was supposed to eliminate. Instead, he'd almost done a double take when he'd seen them standing in Edgar's throne room. They'd looked young in the photos, but he hadn't expected them to actually be children. _How can three people so young do all this?_

The woman had warned him that he couldn't trust his eyes, but he wondered if he could really trust her. If these three were betrayers though, the group in Radiant Garden could be in grave danger. "What do I do?" he asked as he stared at his gargantuan fists. He might not have the time to stop and research them, and he might not be able to trust what he saw if he did.

_Keep a close eye on them and wait for one side to slip up. Evil always does._ The red on the black metal of his sword glowed at that thought, lighting up his somber face. Sooner or later, one or the other would mess up, and when they did, justice would be served on the end of his blade.


	7. Chapter 6

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 6: Hope and Despair**

**Radiant Garden**

The music was soft and lilting as the mass of frills and flesh danced in circles to it. It was an excuse to forget the dangers that lingered outside and enjoy their time together. The small group of musicians had to play loud enough to be heard over the hum of the gears as the castle made its way to Radiant Garden's central hub. Most of the residents of Figaro castle were used to it, and took the sounds in stride, adjusting to it for their guests. Namine had even goaded Roxas into dressing up and joining her out on the dance floor, the blond boy tripping over himself in an attempt to keep up with her. He was wearing one of the formal outfits another soldier had to make him presentable for the impromptu ball. It was just a bit too big, but Roxas was determined to make it work for her. It was a hilarious sight and one Riku was glad he hadn't tried to emulate. He had found a spot on the wall and planted himself up against it, not having any desire to make a fool of himself.

He made sure to keep an eye on his two companions, noting that Roxas subtly kept Namine away from the handsome prince of Figaro. Riku had seen the jealousy Roxas had shown when he had flirted with Namine before, though he doubted Roxas knew the emotion was even there. He shouldn't have worried. Edgar's fancies had turned to another maiden in his court and he was trying to charm her as well. Riku smirked. He remembered a certain God of the underworld who also thought he could talk his way into, or out of, any situation. Despite the similarities to Hades, Riku felt like Edgar's flirtations were more of a game than the hope that they'd bloom into fruition. Riku wondered if, like everyone else he knew, Edgar had already found a girl he'd fallen for.

He rested his head on the cold stone, closing his eyes for a moment. He didn't need to play the hero here, even if he was still getting used to the role. Growing up on the Islands, Sora and he had been friends. But when it came time to choose between his friend and Kairi, he'd chosen Kairi without hesitation. It had been Sora who'd tried to keep the friendship of all three together, despite Riku's attempts to cast him aside. He'd never admit it to Sora, and it was hard to admit to himself, but at that time he'd been wrong and Sora had been right. It was almost enough to make him laugh.

A soft cough brought him out of his self-deprecation and he saw a young wisp of a brunette staring up at him with deep blue eyes and giggling quite inanely. It was the third such lady to approach him, and each had been the same. Naive, innocent, and not a brain cell between them. He sighed, not even acknowledging her as he pushed from the wall and exited the main hall, ignoring the angry look she shot him. He had to get away from the ladies that wanted to throw themselves at him. All they did was remind him of the redhead who had gone missing.

_Kairi..._ It still stung that he'd let her be taken again. Both of his friends were out there, and he had no idea where. He couldn't know whether Sora was safe, and with Namine losing her connection with Kairi, he had no idea if she was still alive either. _If she's not...if either of them aren't...nothing will stay my wrath. I don't care if the darkness comes back because of it. Whoever did it will pay._

Loud clanking footsteps echoed off the walls and Riku turned to see Celes patrolling behind him, still in her armor as she scoured the halls of Castle Figaro. She stopped by him, her face unreadable, and Riku wondered what she was thinking. "How come you aren't at the ball with your friends?"

Riku shrugged. "Didn't feel like being a third wheel." He looked at her. "I suppose I could ask you the same question."

Celes paused, then looked down at him. "It wouldn't be as fun without someone to enjoy it with."

"There seemed to be plenty of soldiers who would have loved to dance with a general."

Celes gave a soft smile, a rare sight on her face. "I wouldn't doubt it, but my heart belongs to another. He taught me so many things, to care and love instead of just fight. He saved me, and without him here, the dance would be hollow. Though I think you know my meaning."

Riku flushed and stammered. "I don't...I mean..."

Celes's eyes glimmered and her smile showed she didn't believe him. She walked alongside him, silent for a moment to let him gather himself, then she spoke softly. "You know, you and I are not that different." Riku gawked at her in disbelief, but Celes continued on. "We both fought on the wrong side, though we thought we were right. We both did dark things in the name of what we thought was right. We were both redeemed by friendship and love. And we both still have trouble getting trusted...and trusting others."

She turned at the last, knelt down and placed her arms on his shoulders, staring straight into his light-blue eyes. "If you want to help your friends, you must learn to accept and trust your new companions, Riku. They are not the enemy, and you do not need to fight alone this time. If you don't put aside your anger, you cannot hope to withstand the darkness that threatens to engulf you all."

"I trust Namine," Riku said, his voice hot, "But Roxas..." He sighed, pulling out of Celes's grasp. "I can't fully shake the feeling that he still wants his own life."

"And Namine doesn't?" Celes said, the frankness of her tone cutting through him. "And why shouldn't he? He's tasted the experience of living himself, so why shouldn't he want it to continue?" She paused, staring straight ahead. "The question isn't what he wants, but what he's going to do, Riku."

"He's just...I thought he'd think more like Sora." _And Sora was someone I knew how to handle._

"He was part of Sora, yes?" Riku nodded. "However, he was not Sora when he was living. He had other influences and experiences. Other people in his life." She looked over at him. "Don't shun him for those experiences. Let his experience help you instead." She saw another guard approaching. "I must go and prepare for our arrival at Castle Town. I hope we will get a chance to talk more."

Riku stood alone in the corridor, watching her walk away until he lost sight of her snow-white cloak. _Trust in Namine? In Roxas?_ He wished it was that easy. He kept them at arm's length, and he wasn't sure what was holding him back. There was just a familiar feeling of getting close to someone else for a short time, someone who had faded from his life, and he didn't want to make the same mistake with the two Nobodies who should be returning to his friends when they reunited.

He heard a change in the humming coming from the gears, and a slight tremor ran through the hall. None of the guards reacted in the slightest, and Riku surmised that they must be getting close to reemerging at the castle. He had to gather his team, and he hoped they'd have enough time for him to figure out his own feelings before it was just the three of them on their own again.

* * *

Roxas fell into step next to Namine, letting her separate him from Riku. The silver-haired boy seemed more distant than usual and Roxas really didn't want to set Riku off again, not after their trip anyway. Nobodies weren't supposed to have feelings, but Roxas could only describe the swell inside him as one emotion: joy.

When Namine had talked him into joining her for the ball, he'd been hesitant. Seeing her in the gown she'd been leant sent any worry he might have running from his mind for a mintue. For the second time, she had surprised him with her beauty. He'd warned her that he wasn't much of a dancer, but she'd dragged him out on the floor anyway. He'd felt awkward enough in the outfit he'd been given, and his lack of dancing ability was made even more glaring by how gracefully Namine moved. Still, she'd never mentioned it once, and even if the Nobody could feel emotion as he was now, he doubted she'd have been frustrated or upset. She never left his arms, and the time flew by too fast for his tastes.

Now they were in the hustle and bustle of the main castle town, the reconstruction in full swing. There were many more people than he expected and the small group had to fight their way through the crowd, despite their escort. Edgar had known the streets would be filled and sent a few of his guards as an escort to get them to their meeting with Leon and Aerith, who had now taken residence in the main castle when they weren't down helping rebuild with Cid. With Kefka and his Whimsies causing havoc, the guards at the palace weren't going to let just anyone in to see them. Riku had asked after Celes, but was told that she was unavailable. Though Roxas was curious as to why, he knew better than to ask.

Roxas took Namine's hand, helping her through the crowd so she didn't fall behind, a bit envious of how Riku seemed to slip through the crowd untouched. She gripped his hand tight, and it thrilled him to no end. He never wanted to be apart from her again. They came to an intersection, and the guards held up to allow a large group to pass. Roxas peered at the myriad of different people passing by, immersing himself in the feel of the crowd, when he thought he spied someone across the way. He couldn't see much, but he was certain that he saw the hunter, Vic, staring at them. The crowd in front of them thickened again, and when they passed completely, he was gone. _I think I'm seeing things... _He needed to get some more sleep.

The crowd had thinned once they neared the castle, and Roxas was glad not to be jostled around so much. "Roxas, I think we're out of the masses now," Namine whispered to him.

Roxas paused, then blushed as he realized what she meant, and Namine giggled as he let her hand drop. He kept close to her though, enjoying her company. He reached out, intending to just brush her arm a little and give an excuse that he wanted to point something out to her, when someone running slammed into him and they nearly crashed into a heap, Roxas spinning around to keep them both balanced.

"I'm sorry, sir," the boy said hastily, gathering up a blue cloak and trying to extricate himself from Roxas's grip without knocking him over.

Roxas slipped back. "It's alright. Accidents happen," he said, checking the boy up and down. Though the boy was considerably shorter than Roxas, it appeared he was a little older with dirty black hair, as though he'd been living on the streets or worse most of his life. His brown eyes were frightened like he expected Roxas to hurt him. Given the scars on his face and arms, some that were fresh, Roxas wasn't surprised. "Who did this to you?"

The boy shook his head. "No, I'm fine. I hurt myself is all..." He kept his voice low and passive, and when Roxas placed a hand on his arm, the boy winced.

The guards walked over, concern on their faces. "If someone has hurt you, boy, we need to report it. That kind of behavior won't fly here anymore."

The boy nodded, though he shook considerably. Namine knelt down, a warm smile on her face. "What's your name?"

"T...Teren," he mumbled.

"Well, Teren, don't worry. No one will hurt you again, I promise." She took the boy's hand, walking ahead with him and the guards. Roxas was disappointed, as he wanted to still be next to Namine, and he was shocked when Riku fell in step next to him.

"Something feel wrong to you?" he asked, glancing around the street as they walked up to the castle gates.

Roxas shrugged, but as he looked around, he noticed it too. The streets had gone from having a few people milling about to deserted. "Where'd they all go?" he asked, feeling like they'd walked into... "It's a trap!" he yelled, running up to Namine, his Keyblade summoned in a flash of light. Heartless appeared out of the air, and one of the guards barely had time to yell before he was cut down by the claws of a Soldier. Wind whipped up and sent the Heartless flying back as Namine shoved a clutching Teren with her free hand to one of the guards.

"Get him inside!" she yelled, summoning her staff as Riku and Roxas joined her. "We'll deal with them!" Lightning erupted around her and her companions, striking the Heartless and stunning them as the guards raced past. Keyblades lashed out, destroying the Heartless as fast as they could appear.

Alarms blared as Roxas dashed back and forth, slicing the low level Heartless to ribbons. The attack was over in a matter of seconds and Roxas let the Keyblade vanish, following Namine up the steps with Riku close behind. "Everyone alright?" Riku asked once they were in the castle, receiving nods from them both.

Teren rushed and clutched to Namine as soon as she came in, and she tried to calm his sobs of terror. Roxas turned away, hints of jealousy cropping in. _Why am I getting jealous again? It's not like I'm as helpless as he is. I don't need her now, but that boy does. _It felt weird to think of Teren that way, but even though he was older, he acted like he was a lot younger.

"The Heartless haven't been this far into the city in months," one of the guards said.

"How'd they get past Cid's security system?" another asked.

"We're lucky they were here," Teren said softly, looking at the boys from where he was. "Keyblades are the best weapons against the darkness. The trap failed."

Riku nodded, but Roxas's gaze went to the door, his thoughts racing. _This doesn't add up. If it really was a trap, why send such low level Heartless? And how'd they get in, anyway?_ Roxas could only scratch his head. None of this felt right.

"...I'll find a room for him, m'lady. Artur will get you in to see Sir Leon." The guard then took Teren away, and Artur led them into the throne room.

Aerith rose to greet them, a smile on her face. "I'm glad Edgar got you here safely," she said. "We had worried when your gummi ship crashed and feared the worst."

"I wouldn't worry," Roxas said. "We had an excellent pilot." He wished he dared glance at Riku to see what he thought of that.

"Lady Aerith..." the guard began.

"Artur, I've asked you just to call me Aerith. This 'Lady' business is really too formal."

"A thousand pardons, but I must take my leave and report to Master Cid. Heartless have appeared in town again and he'll want to know they breached his security." He bowed and made his way out.

"This is distressing," Aerith said after he'd left. "Leon and Yuffie will want to know as soon as they come back." She sighed. "I had hoped we'd managed to keep the Heartless at bay, but with Kefka lurking, I suppose it was a matter of time."

"Will Cid's equipment help keep you safe?" Riku asked.

"It has so far, but I worry it may not be enough."

"Can we help?" Roxas knew Riku wanted to find his friends, but they couldn't just leave people in danger.

Aerith paused and Roxas ignored the dark look Riku shot him. Finally she turned back to them. "I know you are anxious to find Sora and Kairi, but there is one thing you could do while we wait for Cid to get the gummi ship ready. We've recently picked up a strange anomaly in the Great Maw. Whimsies and Heartless have been swarming there ever since, even though we haven't found anything at all. Would you be willing to check and see what is drawing them in?"

"We'll do it," Riku said without hesitation. "Maybe it'll even help us find why the Heartless have returned to Radiant Garden again. Besides, we can't find our friends until we have an idea of where to look."

"Thank you. I will leave this in your capable hands."

Roxas nodded, turning on his heel and following his friends out. _So much for getting rest._

_

* * *

_

Maris wove her way through the crowded streets, ignoring the protests of those who weren't moving fast enough to clear a path for her. She didn't have time for these clueless peasants who were rebuilding a home that was going to be destroyed again. She'd learned long ago that fighting the darkness was wasted effort. Her strength and that of her brethren had not been enough to save her homeworld. If these peasants thought they were stronger, they were sadly mistaken.

Thoughts of her home brought up thoughts of Braxis. Restin told her that her lover had betrayed them, releasing the Keyblade wielders and allowing them to escape. She couldn't believe it. Braxis had been so strong and resolute, but the chosen of the Keyblade had a way of corrupting those who should have eliminated them in a heartbeat, like Axel from that group of Nobodies that thought they were conquerors. He too had been led astray by those that used the Keyblade, first by one of his own, then by the boy Sora. All they did was bring trouble with them.

_Of course, they have their uses too._ Restin had learned that Keyblade wielders were strong in both heart and soul, strong enough to be moved from one to another, and a soul was what her kind needed. Ever since the Heartless raided their world, they'd been living without one. _And we were so close to having one again, if not for that wretched Nobody._

She had no idea where the blonde Nobodies had been hiding, but the boy had ruined a perfectly good soul transfer. She could have strangled him when she saw him in Radiant Garden's town, but she chose to stick with the plan. She let him and his friends go, knowing their was a perfectly good soul walking away with them. _Patience._ It was almost as if Restin spoke that word into her ear.

She turned, dark blue eyes glancing back and forth as she ducked into a seedier part of the Castle Town, one she knew well, and stepped into a building that had been decrepit since the world had been destroyed and taken over by Maleficent. She made her way down the stairs and through a door before flopping down in a chair, her brunette hair falling into her eyes. She waited in the dim, candle-lit room for her partner to return.

Several minutes later, a portal of darkness flared up and a lone boy walked through, a smile on his face. "Did it work?" she asked in anticipation.

"Like a charm," Teren said, plopping down next to her with practiced ease. "The attractor was planted, just as you requested, and they suspect nothing."

Maris grinned. "And that fool Vic will soon see the Heartless showing up wherever the boy goes, yes?"

"I'll make sure of it." Teren lounged back, fingering a scar just above his right eye. "I told you I could set anything in motion, didn't I? They didn't even flinch at helping a poor, scared kid. They even think I'm some kind of abuse victim or something. People who want to believe something will if you let them see what they want to."

Maris nodded, though she didn't like his tone. "Just remember to keep Riku alive until I can get to him."

Teren waved dismissively. "It's as good as done."

"Restin chose well, then, and you will be rewarded for your service."

"I know I will," he said, confidence brimming from him. There was something about the boy that grated Maris to the core. Despite never putting a toe out of line around her or Restin, he always managed to say things that made her wary of him. "Just remember my price and I'll serve the Nobodies up on a silver platter."

She sniffed. "Just don't think you can play us for fools, boy."

"I wouldn't dream of it, Maris, so long as those three pieces are in my grasp." He smirked. "You can find them, right?"

Maris laughed. "You must be joking. Restin can find anything he likes and either we or the Soulless can retrieve it. Just be careful, Teren, or you may find yourself on the wrong end of one of these." She pulled out a small blade, the same one she used on Kairi. "You may not be strong enough for a full transfer, but we can always use more Soulless minions."

If that bothered Teren at all, he didn't show it. _Cool as a fall day, that one._ He stood, giving a short bow. "I have a role to keep up and I intend to make use of it. After all, I managed to infiltrate the castle in a matter of minutes when you and your little band couldn't get past the gates. Do keep that in mind."

The portal flared up, the sound drowning out any response Maris might have made, and Teren stepped into it before it closed behind him. She tore an arm off the chair, hurling it at the wall where Teren had been, wanting to beat the smug smile off the kid's face. _Oh, he is a slippery one. I better warn Restin to keep an eye on him, just in case._

_

* * *

_

Namine followed the boys closely as the thick crowds of the town gave way to craggy paths of the Bailey that led down to the Great Maw. She wasn't sure what to expect down there, even as the path opened up to a wide area scarred with the signs of battle. She didn't know what had transpired here, and she wasn't sure she wanted to. The Heartless had been attacking all the way from the castle, and down here, surrounded by the cliff walls, it felt like a grave.

Wind whipped along the desolate landscape, the chill snapping at her and causing her to grip her arms and rub for warmth. She clamped her jaw shut to keep from shivering as they walked along. _It's just uncomfortable. Don't complain. They need to know you're dependable. _She had told them she could fight, and she was not going to let them down just because of a little breeze.

Riku stopped, turning himself around. He hadn't dismissed the Way to Dawn once since leaving the town and he'd been ready for any attack the Heartless had brought. Roxas looked at them both, letting his own Keyblade vanish. "There's nothing here."

Riku held up a hand. "I wouldn't say that. I can feel a strong light somewhere, but I can't see it."

Namine held onto her staff, which she'd named the Ink Caster, fear making her grip the wood hard. Strong light tended to lure in strong Heartless. She glanced back and forth, but unlike in the Bailey, the Heartless had not shown up down here. Even so, she didn't dare relax.

It didn't help that something was niggling in the back of her mind. She could feel the pull of something, but had no idea what it was or why she was feeling this way. She just felt like there was something she needed to do.

She walked away from the others, searching for the source, and a small, brief flash of light caught her attention. It seemed to come from the cliff wall and Namine frowned, confusion filling her. She reached out with the Ink Caster in front of her, and began tapping it on the wall. It appeared solid, and she wondered if it had just been a trick of the light. She sighed, resting it on the wall just as another flash happened. It touched the Ink Caster and a large portal of blues, reds and purples leapt into view. Namine was so surprised she fell backward, pulling the Ink Caster with her, and the portal vanished again.

Namine frowned, getting up and setting the Ink Caster against the wall, the portal reopening before her eyes. She could see a path beyond the opening, and in the far distance were three figures. The familiar feeling crept back into her mind and she cried out for joy. "Riku! Roxas! It's Kairi!"

The boys rushed over as Namine felt her magic flow. The portal was unstable, and she knew what she had to do. She focused her energies, stepping back and using her own magic to reinforce the pathway.

Roxas watched over her shoulder, one hand resting on it, as she tried to keep from losing the entrance again. The figures were now running towards them, and she could see Kairi and Sora with a third she didn't know. It didn't matter. They'd found them again.

"Roxas!" Riku yelled. "Heartless! Keep them from Namine!"

She heard Roxas's keyblade appear with a familiar sound and she wished she could help. Her focus had to be the portal. She got the feeling from Kairi that if it closed again, they might not be able to reopen it. The sounds of battle behind her only fueled her urgency. _C'mon guys. Hurry._

A loud clanking noise resounded around the Great Maw and a dark shadow fell over her. Hands gripped her and pulled her back as a large creature landed right where she'd been. She landed with a thump on top of someone, and looked to see that Riku had yanked her out of the way as Roxas moved between her and the giant.

It was five times her height at least and the body was large and round like a Big Body, though it shone with a metallic sheen. The arms were stiff, as though added on to the sides without much thought, and the legs only bent a little when it bounced. The head was tiny compared to the rest of the body and had two small antennae that looked to be made of copper tubing for ears. It didn't seem to be attached very well as it rotated at the slightest movement. Halfway down the chest was the same symbol that had been on the creatures in the desert. "Another Whimsy," she breathed, trying to look beyond it to see if the portal had stayed open.

It had, as far as she could tell, but it was weakening. She didn't have time for much else as its legs bent and it bounded at them. The three of them scattered as it crashed into the ground, the shockwave knocking them off their feet. It growled, an eerie mechanical sound and dark energies radiated off its body. A hatch opened and several of the Whimsies Kefka had attacked them with leapt off the larger Whimsy and raced through the portal. The darkness grew, then focused into a small area before shooting at the portal. It slammed into the entryway, the light and dark fighting for a moment before the light fizzled and the portal vanished. Energy backlashed into Namine, knocking her flat.

She sat back up as Roxas leapt in front, deflecting a metal projectile with his Keyblade as he protected her. She leapt up, her arms aching, and she readied herself for battle. Riku was circling behind the creature, trying to keep out of its sight and Namine fired off three successive fireballs at it to keep it focused on them. It bounced in place, little hatches opening up on the front as more sharp metal objects whirled toward her and Roxas. He summoned a second Keyblade, playing guard for her as he whirled with both. Metal clanged on metal and the silver discs fell all around without doing much damage.

A sound like winding clockworks rang throughout the Great Maw and the Whimsy began spinning toward them at high speed, forcing Roxas and Namine to throw themselves back out of the way. It crunched into the cliff wall, grinding as it bounced off and Riku backflipped away, slicing at it as it raced by. Metal screeched on metal, making an ear-piercing sound, but didn't seem to do much damage. It rebounded off one more wall before slowing. It shook, the head sliding around on top of the body, but never coming off.

Riku leapt from behind, Keyblade ready to swing, when a panel shot out off a spring and slammed into him, knocking him back. Roxas drew up both Keyblades, light glowing at the tips. He brought them in half-circles, the light holding until the points joined. He spun in a circle once to gain momentum, then tossed the ring of light at the Whimsy. It screeched in immense pain, then sent a shockwave at Roxas that knocked him on his ass.

It bounced on its short, stubby legs three times and the portal jumped back into view, though the edge was tinged with black now. Namine could see the path again and saw Kairi and the dark man fighting off the Whimsies, while Sora was on his hands and knees, a shroud of black seeping onto him. Darkness radiated from the large Whimsy and Namine cried out as it felt like something was trying to pull her apart. She thought she heard her name being yelled, but she couldn't be certain. All she knew was that she'd dropped to her knees and was cradling her body.

She heard Roxas cry out from nearby at the same time as Kairi from beyond the portal, and she thought she heard something shatter like glass. Something inside Namine snapped. She screamed out loud and she felt a surge through her. Light pushed back the darkness, and it felt like her whole body was on fire. She stood, the fire honing into something she could control and she opened her eyes, the flames surrounding her but not touching her body. Bits of light danced within the flames, looking beautiful to her. She didn't know where they came from, nor did she care. She simply wanted to destroy this monster that hurt her and her friends before it could do any more harm.

She raised her staff, fire shooting out at the Whimsy, forcing the gigantic creature back from her and Roxas. Columns of flame rose from the ground, slamming into the giant metal body, but the Whimsy took each blow without dying. She could feel the rush of energy fading, and she knew she had to try and eliminate the creature before it left her completely. She drew in the flames, snarling them around the Ink Caster, and shot out one large beam of fire that hit the beast in the chest, slamming it into the cliff wall. The attack lasted only a few seconds, and when it was done, the Whimsy fell onto its chest. The flames died out and Namine was wheezing when it was done. She locked her knees to keep from collapsing. It had taken so much damage and hadn't faded away. _It's too powerful._

Riku and Roxas charged, presumably to finish it before it could get back up, but the large body popped and Namine gripped her staff, hoping she could do something to help them. _Riku...Sora...Kairi...Roxas...I let them all down. _The big metal monster didn't attack though. It turned and rolled away, breaking through any outlying pieces of the cliff to escape, making horrendous crunching noises as it did. Riku slowed down, staring as it fled. Namine finally let her legs give way.

She was sweating and panting as Roxas hurried over, her outfit hugging her body. "Where did that come from?" Roxas asked.

"I...don't know. It was like I was overloaded with energy, but it wasn't going to last."

"Well, whatever it was, it worked. That thing was damaged badly."

"Namine." Riku's no nonsense tone cut through her pain. "Can you get the portal open again? It doesn't seem to be coming back."

Namine blinked. She hadn't noticed the portal had gone. "I can try..." she said, weary and spent. She lifted the Ink Caster, hoping it would open the portal just from contact again. She rested it on the cliff wall, but nothing happened. She pursed her lips, trying to put a little magic into the staff, but still the entryway refused to appear. She looked back and forth between Roxas and Riku. "I'm sorry...but it's gone."

"If the portal's gone," Riku said after a moment's pause, giving voice to the fear that was roiling in her stomach, "what happened to Kairi and Sora?"

* * *

**The Heart's Paths**

They'd been walking for a long time, and Sora was showing strain. Braxis wasn't surprised. The boy was messing with an ability he'd never used before and the longer they were here, the worse off they'd be. Kairi was still keeping an eye on him, and that was just fine with him, but he could see the worry she tried to hide about Sora's condition.

He'd let his own thoughts wander on the journey, wondering why Restin had tried to remove him. He'd been loyal and lethal, a combination the Hunters valued. He was one of Restin's best. It didn't make any sense to him. His people prided themselves on their loyalty to each other and always had been. It was part of an unwritten code among his people. _So why did Restin stab me in the back? _He supposed it didn't matter. Once he found out the secret of Sora's strength, he intended to stay long enough to defeat them together and regain his spot among the best of the best. Then he would find Restin and kill him.

He glanced over at Kairi and her suspicious blue eyes. She needn't have worried. He was not the type to fight a foe weakened like this. There was no challenge in doing so. No, he wanted to prove he could do so when they were at their best.

It was maddening to him that his victory had been stolen away. _And a glorious victory it would have been too._ But even he had to admit that they had been a good combination, once they'd fought together. Combined, they were just weaker than Restin was, and he'd been the only one of his kind to give him a good fight. He'd walked away the victor in that fight, but it was not without scarring.

However, Restin was leader because he knew how to do more than just fight. Braxis was great at what he did, but he knew he wasn't capable of leading his people in anything but battle. He lived for combat and to be with Maris. It was supposed to be that simple.

"Sora, I think we should rest. You look like you're going to faint," Kairi said, pulling him from his thoughts.

Sora shook his head, though Braxis doubted Kairi knew the real reason why. He had long since deduced that the small tremors they'd been feeling some time after starting their trek were signs of how unstable this region was. The fact that they were growing in intensity showed Braxis that they were running out of time. With Sora refusing to stop, Braxis was certain he knew it too.

Braxis put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "How much further?"

"Not too much. I can feel the destination up ahead."

"Finally," Kairi breathed, relief in her voice. Braxis could only smirk. _It seems her fascination with this place waned quickly when her boyfriend was in danger. _He didn't understand the obsession with scenic beauty. Unless it was the beauty of a woman like Maris, he saw no point in any of the wasteful time spent on watching a sunset or picking out a bouquet of flowers. He wondered if she'd even noticed that while it was colorful and bright up above, there was an endless darkness below the road. _Such is the way with all powerful light._

The floor shook wildly, much more severe than anything they'd experienced yet. Braxis steadied himself, determined not to fall as his companions did. So he was the first to see the portal flare into view as Sora and Kairi picked themselves back up and he could see someone at the other end. _Timing couldn't be better. Even I was worried about this place._

Sora looked at Kairi and she nodded. "Let's go before this place gets worse."

The three of them went running for the exit, only to stop short as a large shadow fell over the portal. Something very large had landed in between the lone figure and their exit. Several strange creatures rushed in, not at all like the Soulless he'd commanded. They had swirls for eyes, a checkerboard body, and very sharp claws. Braxis could see they'd be very fast, just by the way they summoned his staff from the pocket of space he'd stored it in, ready to show these things they'd picked the wrong group to mess with.

The portal collapsed just beyond the creatures and Sora cried out, acting like he'd been stabbed. "Sora!" Kairi cried out, taking her eyes off the creatures to check on her friend. "Are you okay?"

"Kairi, look out!" he cried, and she turned to see one of the creatures rush in. Braxis moved faster than he'd thought possible, reaching out and clamping a hand on its arm before its claws could slice into the girl.

Braxis snarled, bringing the staff down on its arm and it cried in pain, retreating. "Now, we can't have someone damaging your pretty skin, girl. Best keep your focus on your enemy. Your boyfriend will be alright."

"He's not my boyfriend," she said, though her retort didn't sound truthful to his ears.

"You two going to talk or fight?" Sora asked, coming up on Braxis's right.

"I'm always ready for a fight, boy." Braxis glanced at the creatures, beckoning them to come at him. They obliged, and he learned very quickly that they reacted very well, taking several small cuts even as he bashed one to death with the staff. He had no concern for the others, except to make sure none of them died. He had confidence in their fighting capabilities and he had more than enough of these creatures to focus on himself.

Sora cried out and it was such a strangled call that Braxis had to turn back, if only to check on him. The boy was on his hands and knees, and the darkness was feeding on him. Braxis looked over, seeing the portal back and dark as well and he put two and two together, feeling the creatures were using this place to steal Sora's life as his heart was tied to the path. He did the best thing he could think of. Lightning crackled from his staff and he cast it at the portal. The powers clashed and then the portal shattered, leaving them stuck in this place. _I hope he can reopen that once it's safe, _he thought as he watched Sora collapse.

Kairi was fighting off the creatures, but there were too many for the two of them to handle individually. They moved too fast. Braxis grinned, an idea forming. Magic drew in and he cast Zero Gravity. The creatures were floating now. "Let's see you escape now," he growled. Without any traction, they were easy pickings for he and Kairi, and between the two of them, they destroyed the threat. "Are you hurt?" he asked, walking over to was a stupid question. Her arms were covered in blood from the many cuts she'd received.

"Forget me. Sora needs you."

Braxis shook his head. "Don't be silly girl. He collapsed because of the darkness. He'll be alright soon. You do him no good bleeding to death before he wakes." He took her hands in his, cure magic flowing from him to her.

Kairi looked up at him, emotions warring within her, but she finally grit her teeth. "Thank you," she said stiffly.

"I bet that hurt worse than these cuts," he smirked. "And I won't..."

He didn't get to finish his sentence, the road heaving violently under their feet. It was shaking nonstop and Braxis realized something was going terribly wrong.

"Sora!" Kairi cried, trying to get to him and Braxis had to pull her back as the road between them tore apart, leading to a gaping black hole underneath. "Let me go! I have to help him! Sora!"

Sora stirred, pushing himself up, waking just in time as the road beneath him collapsed and he reached out, gripping the edge. Kairi tried to go to him, but the path was disintegrating beneath them and Braxis had to catch her as part of it shattered beneath her to keep her from vanishing into the nothing. Sora tried to pull himself up, but the road broke in his hand and he fell into the darkness screamed his name, reaching out for him in vain, but Braxis could tell he was gone.

"Quit squirming girl, or we go too," he cried, ignoring her sobs. He was losing his grip on her hand, but he wondered if it mattered. This place was going and they were going to go with it. _This is not how I pictured I'd go out._ The floor gave way underneath him, and he forced himself to hold onto Kairi's hand as they fell. He was determined not to let her die alone.


	8. Chapter 7

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 7: Betwixt and Between**

**Radiant Garden**

The trek back to the castle was haunted by a dour mood. The trio trudged back through the Bailey, depression filling their souls and worry clinging to them like wet clothing. Riku stared straight ahead, and he seemed to only react to changes in the terrain. He still had out The Way to Dawn, though he held it so loosely that it appeared he might drop it at any moment. Roxas was the opposite, his Keyblade at the ready, and he twitched at the slightest movement when he wasn't eyeing his two companions to make sure they were alright as often as he dared to make sure neither of them broke down. However, there was a haunted look behind his eyes and kept glancing at Riku as if afraid of him.

Namine stayed between them, her head down. If she hadn't been flanked by the boys, she didn't know where she would have ended up, and she wasn't sure it would have mattered to her anyway. She clutched the Ink Caster close to her, holding it like a lifeline. All she could think was that this was all her fault. They'd been so close to reuniting, within feet of making Kairi and Sora whole again, and she'd failed them. _Now they're both gone._

She had to believe it was just gone, despite the pit in her stomach that thought otherwise. It was as if by not thinking of them as dead, it wouldn't be so, but she knew the idea was at the forefront of all three of their thoughts. She couldn't feel Kairi anymore, and though it had happened before, it felt different this time. Where Kairi's absence had been felt before, now there was just a dead spot in her mind, and she couldn't bring herself to tell either of the boys that.

She knew why she didn't dare say anything to them. It was because she'd been too weak that they'd lost them in the first place. Too weak to keep the portal open. Too weak to defeat the Whimsy that threatened all their lives. And too weak to reopen the portal afterward and rescue two of the most important people in her life. Roxas had tried to comfort her after it happened, telling her she'd done all she could, but it sounded hollow to her ears. Riku had hung just far enough away, sorting through how he felt. _He'll probably blame me when he returns to his senses. Not that I'd blame him for doing so._ She couldn't even look at him as they headed back, not after she'd cost him his two best friends. Roxas kept trying to find something to say, but each time the words died on his lips. There weren't even any Heartless attacks on the way back to distract her from her pain as they'd seemed to vanish. So she just kept putting one foot in front of the other as she drowned in sorrow.

A burst of darkness drew her attention from the nasty thoughts plaguing her and she swung out the Ink Caster, ready for any kind of fight, but it was just Riku sending away The Way to Dawn until he needed it again. They'd finally reached the castle town and Namine took a step back out of fear, not ready to face the look on Aerith and Leon's faces when they heard the news. Roxas gripped her shoulder, a gesture that was meant to bring comfort where there was none, but it was enough to keep her going forward.

She spent the entire trip through the town trying to find some silver lining or hope to give them, but there was none to be had and everything she thought to bring up sounded more feeble than the last. When they reached the castle, the guards let them in without incident and they were walking to the main hall much sooner than Namine would have liked.

Leon and Yuffie were in the throne room with Aerith when they arrived, with Yuffie giving some kind of report that bought Namine a momentary reprieve from having to tell them the bad news. Yuffie was bouncing on her toes in excitement, chittering on about some news that Namine couldn't hear at first while Aerith listened intently. Leon sat a short distance away, leaning up against a pillar with his arms folded and eyes closed. None of them seemed to acknowledge they'd returned. "...and then Leon found there was more to the tunnels. There was a hidden pathway that led down, possibly all the way under the city!"

Aerith nodded. "I want you to show Cid where these tunnels are. We may need to set up more defenses there. We may not be the only ones that know they're there. It might be how the Heartless got into the city."

Leon cleared his throat, though his eyes never opened. "Our guests have returned," he said before straightening up and looking their way. Namine gulped and trembled.

"Welcome back," Aerith said, turning to Yuffie. "Please send down our new arrivals before heading to Cid."

"Aww, but I wanted to hear what treasures they might have found." Yuffie's bounce in her step had lessened, but she still hurried out to do as Aerith told her.

Leon glanced at Aerith, smiling a little. "Seems someone is getting used to being in charge."

Aerith glowered, a look that did not fit her face well. "Someone had to, Leon. The Queen is gone. Ansem is gone. Edgar, who has the most ruling experience now, is too busy dealing with Kefka and Figaro to help out. Cid's getting too old, and he was always better with his hands than people. Yuffie..." She trailed off for a moment, as if trying to find the right words to use in front of them. "She's better off staying with her strengths. Tifa took off after Cloud and hasn't been seen since, and you declined. What was I supposed to do? Say no and let some of the chaos that was going on continue?"

"..." was Leon's articulate response.

Aerith turned away, the frustration in her sigh evident. "I know you've had difficulties dealing ever since Radiant Garden fell, but that was a long time ago. And despite what you may think, this has been hard on me too. I never wanted to lead, Leon. I was content to have a carefree life. But fate doesn't always give people a choice, so I've done what I had to do."

"I didn't know." Leon said. "I just didn't want people always looking to me."

Namine shifted, a little uncomfortable being here and hearing all this, but she didn't know where to go. Leon and Aerith had stopped their conversation, Aerith still upset at Leon, but she said nothing more and let the tense silence hang. Thankfully, the doors to the throne room opened, letting out the uncomfortable setting with the entrance of Yuffie as well as the trio of Mickey, Donald and Goofy.

Mickey saw Riku and rushed forward, hugging his friend as hard as he could. "It's good to see you too," Riku said.

Mickey composed himself quickly as he dropped back down to the ground. "You had me worried. The Heartless have been swarming between worlds, and when I heard you dropped out of sight..."

"Aw, we knew they'd be alright," Goofy said as he ambled up, "These three are stronger than that."

Donald folded his arms and tapped his foot. "Where's my ship?" he demanded of Riku.

"Donald!" Mickey chided.

"What? They're fine and I want my ship back!"

"It...uh...it crashed in the desert," Riku said, embarrassment evident on his face.

"WHAT?" Donald yelled, hopping up and down, the magician's hat flopping back and forth on his head, threatening to fly off at any second.

"Relax, Donald. Get a hold of yourself," Mickey said, putting himself between Donald and Riku. "I'm sure we can repair it."

"Yes, I'm sure I can get Cid to work on it. It is one of his specialties," Aerith added, her calm demeanor piercing through the magician's tirade.

Donald tried to stay mad, but the calm look on Aerith's face reduced it to a small grumble. Finally, he turned to Riku. "He better, or I expect you to get me a new one."

"Yeah..." Riku said, though he looked a little pale.

"Now that everyone is here," Aerith said, "I would like you to relay what you found in the Great Maw." Namine gulped, realizing there was no more delaying this. She dug her foot into the stone, not sure how she was going to break this to them.

To her surprise, Riku stepped in before she could get started. "The light drawing in the Heartless was from a portal being used by Sora and Kairi. But before they were able to get through, a large Whimsy attacked. It destroyed the portal, and though we tried to stop it, it was too powerful. It got away from us. We tried to restore it, but it wasn't there any more and neither were they." He choked up a little at the end, and Namine put her hand on his arm.

A soft gasp ran through the room. "Gosh, what do you think happened to Sora and Kairi? Do ya think they're alright?"

Riku shrugged. "I don't know. Several Whimsies ran in before the portal was destroyed. We don't know what happened inside after that."

Silence hung in the room for several seconds before Goofy piped up. "This portal you talked about. Was it made of darkness like the ones them Organization XIII fellers used?"

"No, it wasn't anything like that," Roxas said. "It was colorful like a rainbow or a sunset. I've never seen anything like it before."

"Colorful...like a rainbow..." Mickey muttered, pacing for a second. "Oh no."

"What is it?" Namine asked.

"That sounds like The Heart's Paths."

"The Heart's Paths?" Goofy asked, turning to Donald.

"Never heard of it," Donald responded.

"You wouldn't have. I only heard about it when I was training under Master Yen Sid. It was another way to travel between worlds. They were used by Keyblade wielders in a time before the Keyblade War. A Keyblade wielder could use the strength of their heart to create a path between two worlds. A path that was made entirely of light. The Heart's Paths itself was where this light would pass through. Many used this way of moving between worlds because it allowed them to travel faster than the Lanes Between, so they could get to worlds quicker to protect them from Darkness."

"That sounds pretty useful," Riku said.

Mickey shook his head. "That was the idea, but the use of them was abandoned after several Keyblade wielders were lost. You can't have light without darkness, and a realm like the Heart's Paths, where so much light converges, is swimming with it. And because the path you create is tied to your heart, you're in more danger from the darkness than the Lanes because not even armor can protect you. If the path of light is ever destroyed, the travelers will plunge into the darkness unprotected."

Namine gasped and choked back a sob, guilt wracking her as she turned to Roxas. He comforted her as she shook. "Is there any chance they're okay?" Roxas asked.

Mickey couldn't hide the sorrow on his face. "I don't know. I could ask Master Yen Sid..." He trailed off, not wanting to take away all hope.

Silence returned, save for Namine's crying, until Riku broke it. "What about Restin? Did you find out what he was up to?" It sounded like he was straining to say anything at all.

"Well, I don't know why they attacked you, but I did learn that they've been traveling to several worlds. They seem to be looking for something, but whatever it is, I don't think they've found it yet. Cid was looking into it with Tron while we waited for you."

"Good, I want to see him as soon as possible." Riku turned, heading for the doors.

"Riku..." Mickey said, hurrying after his friend and stopping just behind him. "You don't have to...I mean..."

Riku didn't turn around. "I can't just wait around and hope. I made a promise..." He stopped, clenching his fist. "And I intend to keep it. If...if they're alive, Sora will protect Kairi. And if not...stopping Restin is up to me."

"Us," Namine said, pushing away from Roxas and standing on her own again. Everyone was staring at her, but she bit her lip to keep her resolve. "We said we were in this together and that hasn't changed." What Riku had said struck a chord with her and she knew she had to stop wallowing in her guilt. She had to do something, even if it only meant fighting in honor of Kairi's memory if she was truly dead.

"You need us," Roxas added before Riku could say anything. "You don't need to always be the lone wolf. Besides, I want another crack at him myself."

Riku stared at them, his expression as neutral as she'd ever seen it. Namine tried to silently will him to let them come along. She needed to make up for her mistake. But there was something in his eyes she'd never seen before. "Alright, let's go then." Namine relaxed, letting out the breath she'd been holding, relief filling her.

"Okay," Mickey said. "Donald, Goofy and I will meet with Yen Sid and try to find out anything we can for you before joining you. We'll keep in contact with you through the gummi ship."

Leon motioned for them to follow him. "Cid's this way."

As they followed Leon, Namine caught up to Riku, falling into step with him. "Thank you for covering for me," she whispered.

Riku shrugged. "I didn't. I told the truth. I said it was the Whimsy's fault, and it was. You did your best to stop it. We all did. You can't ask more than that." He paused, then smirked.

"What?"

Riku smiled. "Just remembering something Sora and Kairi kept trying to hammer in my head. Funny that it takes something like this for me to get it." The smirk vanished, his eyes haunted again, and he coughed, then glanced at her. "Anyway, it's you two that deserve the thanks. I thought I'd be out on my own again."

"Why? Did you think we'd hide here while you went off to fight on your own? You don't know us as well as you think." Her stern look changed to one of mischief. "Roxas can be quite stubborn when he wants to be. You should know that as well as I."

"Just about my promises," Roxas chimed in as he caught up to them. He paused, looking like he was gathering his thoughts. "Look, I know we aren't going to replace Sora and Kairi..."

"Nor would we try to," Namine added quickly.

"But you could use someone to watch your back until we find them, and I think we've proven we can be trusted to do that." Namine noticed that Roxas sounded more confident that they would be found. She wished she could voice the same.

Riku nodded. "Then let's go. I plan on making sure Restin pays for everything he's caused so far."

Cid gave a gruff hello as they walked in, stopping his conversation with Yuffie. Yuffie squirmed, obviously wanting to know what they'd talked about, but Cid talked over her. "Well, if it ain't the rescue squad. Coulda saved ya the trouble of comin' down here though. We haven't had a blip on yer friends in some time."

An uncomfortable silence followed and Yuffie looked at Leon, her usually happy demeanor deflated by the mood. "Wh...what happened?"

Leon coughed, looking at Cid instead. "What about Restin's activity?" His avoidance showed that he wanted this to be a conversation for later.

Cid raised an eyebrow, but was wise enough not to ask. He just turned to the computer, typing in a few keys, and a large map of worlds appeared on the screen. "This Restin guy and some people we think work for him have been popping up like daisies. But lately, they seem to be looking at these three worlds pretty heavily. Dunno what's there, but whatever it is, they haven't found it yet, cause they haven't left. Tron seems to think whatever they're looking for is connected to this, an item that went missing from the castle vault a couple of weeks ago." A six-sided stone object with strange markings on both the outside and the face of the stone interposed itself on the screen, the image rotating in front of them.

"What is it?" Namine asked, though she got the feeling she'd seen it before.

"Dunno," Cid said. "The King said he knew it was in the vault and that he was warned to make sure no one got to it by Master Yen Sid, but that he never got told why. Just that it was dangerous. As far as the records we have go, someone left it in the vault before the Keyblade War with explicit instructions that it never be removed or used for any reason. Thieves broke in a couple of weeks ago, and the King is certain Restin is behind the theft."

"I wonder what is so important about this item that he would risk breaking into the castle to get it. I mean, what do they mean by 'dangerous'?" Roxas mused.

"Hell if I know. I just tell what I learned." Cid grunted, typing in a few more keys. "Also, we picked up strong darkness coming from these worlds as well." The map returned with a different set of worlds highlighted. "It don't seem to be Restin and his men, so I'd watch it because it means someone else is taking advantage of Restin causing chaos. And to top it off, the damn Heartless are swarming up everywhere."

Leon frowned. "I'll let Mickey know about this." He turned to Riku. "I hate to say it, but the worlds Restin is attacking might have to take priority. Can you handle it?"

"Just give me the coordinates. We'll make sure they don't get what they're after," Riku said.

"Okay, I'll upload it to the gummi ship I'm loanin' ya" Cid said.

"Already done," came a mechanical voice. Namine glanced around, a bit startled at the new intrusion. "Although, the gummi ship is not in ideal condition..."

"Dammit Tron. I told ya," Cid said, arguing with the machine, "that ship is sturdier than most newer contraptions. The Highwind ain't never let me down before."

"According to the logs, the ship hasn't flown since..."

Cid punched a key, grumbling under his breath and the voice went silent. "Stupid know-it-all computer program. Should never have installed the voice synthesizer." He turned to them. "Don't you worry. She may have years on her, but she's battle-tested and one of the best maneuvering ships out there. You'll do just fine." Roxas looked ill, and Namine felt the same, remembering their last gummi ship flight, but Cid paid neither of them any mind. He punched in a few more keys, then got up to lead them out to the hangar to show them what the Highwind looked like.

Namine held back, something tugging at the back of her mind. Cid had called Tron a 'know-it-all' and she wondered if Tron might know something about the Heart's Paths that King Mickey did not. She reached out and pressed the button Cid had before. "Hello?" she said, glancing around. She wasn't truly sure where she should be looking to address Tron. "Tron? Are you still here?"

"Indeed I am." the computerized voice came back. Namine jumped, still not used to having a voice come from all around her.

"My name is Namine. I have a question for you."

"User Namine is not recognized."

"I...I'm a friend of Sora," she blurted out, not really sure why she said it.

"Sora..." Namine didn't think it was possible, but the mechanical voice sounded melancholy. "Please ask you query. I will aid any friend of his."

Namine let out a soft sigh of relief. Somehow, the computer had encountered Sora in the past. Lucky for her. "Do you have any record of the Heart's Paths?"

"I do. That information was stored from a previous User."

"Is there a record of anyone surviving a collapse of the path?" Namine shifted from side to side, hoping it was a positive answer.

"One moment, User Namine, while I research your request."

Silence descended in the room and Namine folded her arms, holding each one with the opposite hand. After a minute, Tron came back. "I have the requested information, User Namine." There was a momentary pause as the screen flickered back on and a picture of a young woman appeared on the screen. She had fiery-red hair that was thick and hung down to the middle of her back. It was held in place by a green ribbon that was wrapped around it going down and then crisscrossed back up. Her eyes were a similar shade of green, but her gaze was hard and piercing. Unlike other women in Twilight Town, she wore loose trousers in a pale brown, tucked into knee high brown leather boots, and fastened up the sides with tiny gold buttons. She wore a flowing white blouse, with wide sleeves laced tight to her wrists. Atop the white blouse, she wore a long, dark-green vest. It swooped down from her shoulders to button below the bust, down to the hip in a line of tiny gold buttons. The vest came to a set of points, one over either hip, before curving back to drop into a single, long point in the middle of the back, that hung to just below her buttocks. "Lorelei Woodans, Keyblade Master. Born in..."

"No, Tron." Namine said, holding her hand to her forehead as she looked down. "I don't need all her information. I just need to know how she survived."

"One moment please."

"Namine!" Roxas yelled. "You alright?"

"I'm fine!" she yelled back. "Be there in a second!"

There was a soft beep returning Namine's attention to Tron. "Unknown. No record was ever input about her escape other than she did once. The only records I have on her after that incident is on what led to her banishment."

That caught Namine's attention. "What? Why was she banished?"

"Individual listed as lost to darkness. Destroyed three worlds before being banished to another plane. Led to the banishment of Eran Dawnstrider, Keyblade wielder." An image of a young man with short black hair and hazel eyes popped up on the screen next to Lorelei. His outfit was simple like Lorelei's. A plain white shirt with a brown vest in the same style as Lorelei's as well as black pants that looked like they were of an expensive fabric. There was a different air to the way he looked, like he was more regal. "They were from the same world. Eran led his people toward the darkness in an attempt to retrieve her. The plan was ultimately foiled by two budding students of Master Yen Sid."

Tron kept going, but Namine stopped listening. Her eyes were locked with those hard green eyes staring back at her.

"Is there anything else?"

"N...no. Thank you very much Tron." The screen fizzled then went blank, which Namine was grateful for. She couldn't take the gaze of that woman any more. Fear crept in and Namine fled the room. She hoped there was some other way, because if what she heard was their only chance, she'd only see Sora and Kairi again if they were consumed by darkness.

* * *

**?**

"Wake up, child. This is no place to be lounging about."

Of all the possible voices Kairi could have woken up to, Braxis' was definitely on the low end of the list. She groaned, her eyes shooting open, and she immediately wished that she hadn't. Her head felt like someone had mistaken it for one of Wakka's blitzballs and her vision swam, making her feel nauseous. A dark hand was extended to her and she took it, knowing somehow that standing on her own was not a good idea. "Thanks," she muttered, her mouth feeling like it was stuffed with cotton. She tried to back off so she didn't look like she was relying on him, but it was a mistake and Braxis caught her as she swayed. He supported her to make sure she didn't fall.

"Hold on there, girl. No need to go running off. Give yourself a minute. Your mind needs to clear before you try walking anywhere." Kairi was inclined to agree. She felt like she was going to vomit all over him any second now. The world was spinning so fast and, even with her eyes shut, the ground was trying to escape from under her. Braxis held her strong though and kept her grounded by talking to her. "Focus on my voice. Latch onto something real. Let the spin happen and it'll pass sooner." That didn't make much sense to her, but she listened to him all the same, and her mind soon cleared enough that she dared to open her eyes again.

At first, she thought her eyes weren't clearing. Things still looked blurry. It took a moment to realize that they were in a heavy fog. Dark shapes loomed around, dead trees that stood guard over their small alcove. Crickets chirped all around mixing with some of the soft croaks of frogs, and there was the peaceful sound of lapping water. The smell hung on her like a damp dishrag, smelling just as foul. She wrinkled her nose as she felt like she could taste the smell and wanted to gag all over again. She took a step back, trying to get away from it, but Braxis grabbed her arm just as she stepped into something that made an audible squish. Whatever it was clutched at her shoe, trying to suck it and her down as Braxis pulled her back to safety. "That was close..." she said, her mind envisioning her vanishing into the ground without a trace.

"Think nothing of it," Braxis said gruffly, taking that statement as another thank you. "After all, you're still disoriented."

"My pain's gone," she mumbled.

"The darkness lost its hold on you. For now, anyway. It didn't give you up without a fight, but I knew if I was strong enough to break its hold, you'd be able to as well."

A bird warbled in the distance, the mournful cry of an avian that Kairi wasn't familiar with. "Where are we?"

"No place I've ever been before. Just seems to be an endless bog." He shrugged, waving in the direction she'd tried to back into. "Everything in that direction is black quicksand as far as I can tell." He helped Kairi turn around. "I thought I saw a light and movement for a moment in that direction, but I didn't travel far enough to find out what it was."

_Did he stick around...because of me?_ He seemed so independent, so why he'd watched over her now was a mystery. Maybe this place scared him as well. "Sora?" she asked, a little of her worry and fear bubbling over.

"Haven't seen him. If he's here too, it's not near us."

Kairi dug her fingernails into her palm, trying not to think the worst. "Maybe we should wait until he finds us?" she asked, trying to think about what she'd been told to do when lost.

"If you want to wait in this fog and damp in the middle of nowhere and hope he stumbles into you, be my guest. I, for one, intend to find out what I saw now that you are awake." Disdain laced his words as he let her shoulders go.

Kairi shot him a nasty look, not certain he could see it and not caring. Deep down, she knew he was right, but he hadn't needed to put it like that. Any time he did something she might consider decent, he followed it up with something that made her want to punch him. She huffed as she walked past him, only a little unsteady now, and she bristled when all he did was chuckle. _Stupid, self-centered prick._ _ Why'd I get stuck with him anyway?_ She consoled herself in planning just how to retaliate once they were safe as he fell into step alongside her. Together, they trudged through the muck and fog.

Dark shapes of dead or fallen trees stood as sentinels during their slog through the murky water. As they walked along, they began to notice large, gnarled, wooden poles that had glowing balls along the top that served like street lamps, though there seemed to be no set path for them to follow. They seemed strewn about across the bog, and though they were the only markers the two could find to lead them on, occasionally they had to backtrack to find the next. While they could hear many creatures around them, nothing came out into view, not even when Kairi sneezed.

Nothing dangerous was around that Kairi could see or hear, especially Heartless or other minions of the darkness. She kept her guard up, ready to summon the Oo-de-lally at the first true sign of trouble, but with Braxis not having his staff out, she would have felt silly jumping at shadows with the weapon out. She hated the thought of comparing her own actions to his, but he was the more experienced fighter, and if he saw no need, she didn't either. As the trek went on and on, Kairi's nerves began to fray. She was cold, filthy and hungry, and by the time they made it out of the bog, all she wanted to do was hurt something.

Stepping out of the dead trees and murky water to an actual path, she saw that the lamps they'd been following were in a line now, leading from their position into the deep fog and barely illuminating the dark forms of a group of buildings looming in the fog. Kairi couldn't see a light on in any of them and no sound came from them. They just stood like silent guardians in the mist, standing watch over a small area of this god-forsaken place. The whole scene made Kairi shiver.

"Let's go," Braxis growled, though he didn't move at first. Kairi didn't have to ask what made him hesitate, her own body unwilling to move toward the spooky locale. It was hard enough to keep from summoning the Keyblade. Despite the mood, if there were inhabitants of this place, there was no sign that they were hostile. Entering with a weapon out would do nothing but foster distrust, and Kairi knew she could call on it whenever it was needed.

Braxis tensed as they past the first abandoned buildings. Nothing stirred and an eeriness to the whole situation settled on Kairi. She'd never been anywhere that looked so deserted while giving the feeling like she was being scrutinized. Her skin crawled and she kept trying to sneak glances left and right. Despite not seeing any sign of life, she got the feeling someone was watching them tread through the dead city.

Near the center of this ghostly town was a fountain. In the center was a statue of a woman with an urn at her feet and her arms extended skyward. Water was pooled in its basin, but like everything in this place, it was stagnant. She thought she saw something move near the statue in the center, but with all the fog and darkness, it might have just been her eyes playing tricks on her. "Hello?" she called, her voice dying in the air quickly. She thought someone was there, but it was like they were playing a game with her. She glanced around, her irritation from before returning and she stomped her feet. "Ok, I know someone's there. Quit hiding or I'm coming and dragging you out myself."

"Well, it seems the little girl still has spunk," a voice said from behind her, "though I'd expect nothing less." She froze, the man's voice so familiar it dredged up old memories that echoed through her head with a mixture of his words and hers.

_'Hey, I feel like we're friends already.'_

_ 'You're not acting very friendly!'_

Kairi turned, her mind reeling as the memories continued to replay in her mind.

_'What took you so long, Kairi?'_

_ 'I tell ya, Kairi, you've got a lot of guts, jumping right into the darkness like that.'_

_ 'Let me go! Let go!' _

She went on the defensive from the beginning at the sight of the red-haired man, despite the fact that all he did was stand there, leaning against the statue with his left arm hanging from the woman's extended right arm. He hadn't changed a bit since she'd seen him last. "Axel..."

"Hey! Looks like I made an impression too. You remembered!"

Kairi snarled as he approached. "Of course I remember. You kidnapped me!"

Axel stopped short, scratching the back of his head. "Yeah, I thought you might still be sore about that..." He glanced down, composing himself. "And if you hadn't run off, you wouldn't have fallen into Saix's hands..." he muttered, though Kairi could still hear him because there wasn't any other noise around.

"Friend of yours?" Braxis said, humor lacing his tone.

"Hardly," Kairi said flatly.

"Ouch," Axel said, wincing a little. He seemed put off by their staring and tried to regain his bravado. "I must say, I didn't expect to meet you here. Ever. But let me be the first, and only, to welcome you to Twixt Town." He gestured grandly all around him and the empty shells of buildings surrounding them. "Truly a depressing place, but it tends to grow on you."

"Twixt Town? Never heard of it," Braxis said, his gravelly tone showing his disdain for the fiery Nobody.

"I'd be surprised if you had," Axel said, a bit bemused. "Only people who know about it are those that have been here, and they don't usually tell anyone else. I wonder why," he said, winking at his joke, though Kairi missed what was funny about it.

"Do tell," Kairi said, folding her arms. He wasn't being threatening yet, and Kairi was determined to get to the bottom of where they were and then find Sora again.

"Oh, it's not my story to tell, I'm afraid. Besides, I doubt you'll be here long enough to appreciate the tale anyway."

"Quit dancing around the subject, boy, or I'll beat the answers out of you." Kairi frowned, not liking Braxis' approach to settling this.

"I very much doubt you could," Axel said, his tone playful but there was a hint of steel to it.

"I can and I will. You seem like the jokers we had back home. We had a saying about them. 'Jokers dance with words, but warriors let their actions do the talking.'" Braxis stretched a little, his height getting a bit more imposing.

Axel didn't look impressed. "Any time. My name's Axel and I'm always good for a fight. Got it memorized?"

"Stop messing around, Axel." Kairi glanced behind her as a female voice cut in. For a moment, Kairi thought it was Namine, but when she got a good look at the raven-haired lady in the Organization cloak and peered into those deep-blue eyes, Kairi felt like she was looking in a mirror instead. "A fight won't solve anything, and you aren't so hot down here." She scowled and folded her arms once she stopped near Kairi.

"Geez, Xion. Ruin all my fun, why don'tcha?"

"Fun?" Xion said incredulously. "What about this place says fun?"

"Exactly!" Axel said, gesturing around in wide arcs. "This place needs some livening up. This town may be dead, but I don't intend to die with it."

Xion shook her head, a frustrated sound echoing from her, and she turned to Kairi. "Sorry about him. I think he's going a little stir-crazy." She studied Kairi intensely. Kairi shifted, feeling distinctly uncomfortable at the scrutiny. "Kairi. It's so nice to finally meet you. I remember so much about you." Kairi's confusion must have shown, because Xion answered the unspoken question immediately. "I had some of Sora's memories...for a time anyway." She paced around Kairi before Kairi could ask her any other questions and Kairi blushed, feeling like she was under a microscope. She ran her hands along her skirt to try and deflect some of her embarrassment as Xion made three circuits, finally stopping in front of her again. "You grew up about as I pictured you would."

"Uhm...thanks?" Kairi went redder, unsure of what to say to something like that. She glanced at Axel, finding it hard to meet the other girl's eyes. "So..how'd you end up in a place like this anyway?"

Axel blinked, and it was his turn to look uncomfortable. He scratched the back of his head and wouldn't meet her gaze. Xion looked confused by his avoidance. "The same way anyone gets here. They die."

Kairi felt like someone punched her in the stomach. _Dead? I can't be dead. My life just started. _She shook her head, trying to deny it. Braxis kept her upright, because her own legs wouldn't hold her. Braxis was saying something to Axel or Xion, but she couldn't make it out. All she could see was the sad look on Axel's face. "Sora?" she asked, not sure she wanted an answer.

Axel shrugged. "Was he with you? If he was, he hasn't been here. But then, only those that can't move on come here."

Braxis paused mid-sentence. "Can't move on?"

Xion walked over to Axel. "Twixt Town is just a stop over for those that have died but refuse to leave the mortal world behind. It was created as a place to help a soul reach peace so it wouldn't just fade away."

"Which is why the damn Overseer is so mad at us. We just refuse to leave here." Axel said, grinning wide again.

"Overseer?" Kairi asked. Before anyone could tell her who that was, the hair on Kairi's neck stood on end and she felt a shiver race through her body. There was a sound, almost like someone was whispering in her ear. She saw Axel's eyes narrow and she knew someone was coming up behind her. She turned in time to see the mist clear out of the town. A figure floated out of one of the buildings toward her and, as he neared, Kairi gasped.

The thing coming toward them had deep blue skin and three eyes that if you connected the center where the pupils should have been, it would have been a perfect equilateral triangle on its face. The eyes were glowing orange ovals on its face, surrounding three slits that had what looked like mesh covering them that passed for its nose. The mouth looked like someone had sliced it open so it could breath and resided on what Kairi took for its chin. Its impossibly-long fingers were pressed against the ones from opposite hand in front of it. It wore long, priest-like robes of red and gold that hung down past where his feet would have been, though the designs were like nothing Kairi had ever seen before with swirls and lettering in languages she never knew existed.

"What lost souls have found their way to my town?" He said. There was a slight echo to his voice that was disconcerting, but he didn't seem to be threatening in any way. Kairi wondered why he set Axel so on edge.

"They aren't lost," Axel said, his tone bouncing back to light-hearted. "They're just visiting Xion and me."

Though the mouth never changed expression, Kairi got the distinct impression he was frowning. He ignored Axel's attempt and floated to Kairi, his long fingers resting on her shoulder as he spoke to her and Braxis. "Come children, there is no need to stay in this dreary place any longer. On the other side, you will be well taken care of."

Kairi never considered it and backed off. "No. I can't. Sora needs me! He's still out there somewhere!"

The Overseer sighed, straightening back up and placing his fingers together, acting as though this was something he'd heard many times. "My dear child. I know your life was important to you, and the people you loved meant a great deal. But that life is over now. Lingering here..." he said, shooting a dark glance at Xion and Axel, "will serve no purpose except to have your soul fade away."

The Overseer drifted toward Kairi again and Braxis stepped in the way. "Look, she said no," Braxis said. The Overseer merely reached out, grabbing Braxis' arm and Braxis screamed in agony, electricity dancing along his body. He crumpled to his knees.

"I see. Another one of you," he said, sniffing in disapproval before looking at Kairi. "I will be with you in a moment, my dear. Creations of this kind have no place here."

"Creations?" Kairi said, anger filling her. "He's a person, not some...some machine!" She shot out her hand to call the Keyblade, ready to attack him, but the Oo-de-lally did not appear. Her hand tingled as though she was feeling something there that wasn't. The anger fled just as fast as it arrived. "Huh? Why won't the Keyblade come?"

The Overseer chuckled. "Your weapon only existed on the physical plane. You have no use for it now." He spread his arms gesturing around. "Take the time I've given you to think on your situation. Despite these two lingering, look around. All other lost souls have left in one way or another. You must decide. Will you throw away what remains of you for naught, wasting away to nothing as these two have chosen to do? Sooner or later, you will have to choose. Everyone does." He leaned down, picking the big man up as though he were an infant. "I will deal with him first, then be back for you."

Kairi stared at Braxis. The man had been nothing but trouble since she'd met him, but he was also only one of two people she knew here. She thought about what Sora would do if he were here. _Probably something foolish._ Kairi hated to admit it, but she was probably going to do the same thing. Braxis hadn't said he was moving on and she felt the need to speak for him. "Put him down," she said, her words low and threatening.

"What?" the Overseer said, glancing over his shoulder.

"Kairi, you don't know what you're getting into..." Xion said, but Kairi shrugged her off.

The Overseer shook his head. "This place is becoming too crowded with lingerers and other souls may get the wrong idea. I may not be able to send you or them on without your assent, but he lost his soul some time ago and now he's going to follow it."

"He never got to choose," Kairi said stubbornly.

"Irrelevant. Without a soul, there's no choice to make."

"But..."

"He is existing in a state not meant for your world, much less this one. All you've known is a shell." She tried to object but he talked over her. "His time should have been up already, but abominations kept him around. This is my realm, and I must say I have had enough with people disrespecting the laws I was meant to uphold."

"Wait..." Kairi said, frustration building as he kept interrupting her.

"Besides," he added, his superior tone grating on her, "without a weapon, how do you plan to stop me?" And with that, he floated away, Braxis on his shoulder.

Kairi glowered, anger returning and rising because of his arrogance. He didn't even bother to listen to a word she wanted to say, just talking over her. She ran at him and leapt over him, twisting in midair so that when she landed in a crouch, she was facing him. A light flashed as she hit the ground and there were several gasps as the Keyblade appeared, the weapon vibrating in her hand. "I said put him down. Now!"

The Overseer looked stunned, glancing between Kairi and the Keyblade. He looked like he was going to say something, then stopped and dropped Braxis to the ground. "This is a development I have never encountered. How...?" He stopped, composed himself, and glanced at the Keyblade again. "I shall respect your wishes...for now. I must consult the Oracle. Perhaps my predecessor told them something like this..." He turned and floated away into one of the buildings, muttering to himself.

Axel and Xion hurried over, neither able to hide the hope brimming in their eyes. Xion hesitantly reached for the Keyblade, a longing in her eyes that Kairi didn't understand, but she didn't touch it and just smiled at Kairi. "How did you do that? No one else has been able to summon any weapon here."

Kairi shrugged. "I don't know. It was like I felt a connection with the blade I'd never felt before. I don't know how else to describe it. I just..." She paused, thinking about it. "I just knew it wasn't right. I thought of what Sora would have done, and when I went to stop him, it came to me."

Axel laughed. "Well, I must say, that's the first time I've ever seen ol' blue skin at a loss for how to react. Too bad Xion never felt the same, or we'd have busted out of here long ago." Xion's gaze cooled and she shot Axel a look before stalking toward another one of the buildings. Axel looked confused. "Xion. Where're you going?"

Xion shrugged without turning back to look at him. "I'm just a puppet, Axel. I thought I could just forget that here..." She kept on going until the darkness in the building swallowed her up.

"Xion! Hey, I didn't mean it like that...aw, hell. Man, I was never good with words around those two. Hey, Xion! Wait up!" He ran off to catch up with the raven-haired girl. Kairi watched him go, then sighed, sat down and folded her legs under her next to Braxis. She tucked her skirt around as best as she could and rested the Oo-de-lally across her lap, closing her eyes and centering herself in case she needed to be ready.

There was no way to mark time in this place, save for her own steady breaths. Nothing moved on its own, not even the fog, though she was glad it now hovered just outside the city limits. Axel and Xion hadn't returned, but neither had the Overseer. Kairi shivered in the chill air, but never strayed from her vigil. Only when Braxis finally stirred did Kairi move, stretching the cramps out of her legs as she tried to get the feeling back in them.

"I feel like someone sliced me up all over," Braxis said, wincing as he hauled himself up to a sitting position.

"Serves you right," she said with more venom than she'd intended, her memory of her own encounter with it still fresh.

"Funny way of saying thanks." Braxis chuckled. "But I suppose I deserved that. The tactic is effective though. Nice to know." Kairi scoffed and turned away from him. "So where did that come from? And could you call my staff as well? With it, I might be able to summon my own magic to help."

_Would it have killed him to say thanks for helping him? Instead he wants me to say thank you? _"Why don't **you** summon it? You're supposed to be so powerful, after all."

Braxis ignored the sarcastic barb. "I can't. If we landed in the same area, your weapon should have been next to mine. However, something special about you let you do what I could not."

"Her soul is still tied to the living world." Kairi jumped, spinning around to see the Overseer floating behind her. Axel and Xion peered out from a building again, hurrying to hear what was going on. "Though it is not the only reason. The Oracle has told me what I need to know. Only once before has this happened. A soul who arrived here who was not meant to. He was a Keyblade wielder as well, and a Keyblade wielder who can use their Keyblade here is a dangerous influence on the balance here in Twixt Town. With your soul tying you to reality, you cannot be sent on, and the threat to the natural order with such an unnatural weapon overrides the rule that no one leave back to living, then and now. I do not know what is keeping you in that world, but you cannot stay here. You are free to leave."

Kairi felt stunned, and not all of it made sense, but something niggled at the back of her mind until it became a full-on thought. _Namine. Was that why I could feel her?_ She didn't have a full answer yet, but it seemed to make sense. She wondered why it was only her. Roxas was tied to Sora, but Sora claimed he couldn't feel Roxas the way she did with Namine. It was an annoyance, but it was also a question for another time and place. "So we both can go?" she asked, looking to Braxis.

"As much as it displeases me, yes. Fate is playing a cruel joke on me, and I must allow this tragedy against order to flow where it will. The will of the Oracle is absolute. Take the soulless one and go."

"Go? Go where?"

"The Oracle has told me that you will find your way out to the north. There you will come to a ravine and there is where you will find your path."

Kairi nodded, but she still hesitated. "What about them?" she asked, pointing to Axel and Xion. She didn't want to leave either of them in such a dreary place.

The Overseer looked like he might be grimacing. It was still hard to tell. "Fate is not without a sense of humor and has dictated their place. They are to remain here for now and assist me. I can use their help in the archives." He turned and floated away without another word, leaving the group speechless.

"Huh. Well, isn't that a kick in the pants?" Axel mused.

"You'd prefer he was still trying to convince us to move on?" Xion retorted.

"Maybe. It was more fun fighting him."

"Well, he did say 'for now', so you may still get your wish."

Braxis coughed. "I hate to break up the party, but we should be going. We don't know if we have a time limit on this."

Kairi nodded. Xion ran to her, embracing her. "I'm glad I met you." She leaned in and whispered in Kairi's ear. "Take care of Roxas for me."

Kairi nodded. "I will. And I'll see you again. I can feel it." That brought a smile to Xion's face. She looked at them. "Is this ravine easy to find or dangerous?"

"You can't miss it," Axel said, "and it's as dangerous as anything else in this place."

They bade their goodbyes and she and Braxis left Twixt Town. She held onto the Keyblade as they went. This place may not be dangerous, but it was comforting to her and, while she was loathe to admit it, she'd felt naked without it. She didn't want to let it go again until they were back in the mortal world.

The trip was long and they said little at first. Kairi had so many questions she wanted answered, but she didn't want to pry too much into things he didn't want to talk about. Finally, the mind-numbing silence got to her. "Braxis? Why do you call yourself a warrior? You seem to rely more on magic."

Braxis gave her a quizzical look and it made her feel silly for asking. He was silent so long she thought he wouldn't answer, but finally he spoke. "With my people, there are only three types of people: Jokers, Warriors, and Orators. Orators are usually the leaders. Jokers entertain. Warriors fight for their world. I am the latter." He stopped. "Besides, by definition, a warrior is only a person engaged in warfare. That is what I do. I was trained all my life to fight. While others chose the sword or the axe, I chose to use magic because it was what I did best. Does the weapon I chose change what I am or what I believe in my heart?" Kairi didn't respond, just staring straight ahead. "And what about you? Are you any less a Princess of Heart because you grew up on the islands? Or is that more about what you are inside?"

_That's what Sora said. _She had thought he'd gotten through to her. But it seemed like she was falling back on conventions. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to lose herself in thought like she wanted to. They reached the ravine faster than she'd hoped. Kairi kept her guard up for any kind of trap, just in case. She scanned up the cliff walls of the ravine and down around the limp plants that dotted the otherwise-barren landscape. Then she sighed in frustration. "Nothing. There's nothing here."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Braxis said, his voice tensing as he pointed behind her that she turned to see. A portal of pure darkness, similar to the one Axel had pulled her through, formed in the ravine, the energy lashing at the cliff walls. Kairi held her weapon at the ready, wanting to take on whatever came through, but when someone did appear and stepped out of the portal, she could only stare in shock as the Oo-de-lally fell from her hands and clattered to the ravine floor.

* * *

The darkness surrounded Sora, drawing him in and clawing at him as he fell. He tried to fight it off, but unlike the Heartless, there was no form to strike at and the Keyblade passed through unhindered. He could hear Kairi screaming in the dark, a horrible gut-wrenching sound that tore at his soul. He was unable to see or help her, and every time he tried to call out, his voice came out weak and feeble. Helplessness filled him as he continued to plummet away from the light. The darkness swallowed him, filling his nose and throat so he couldn't breathe and he began clawing at his neck, his fingers running red with his own blood.

Just when he thought his life was over, the darkness broke and his descent slowed until he landed on a soft, black surface that clung to his feet every time he moved. He felt his throat, then checked his hands. No blood, as if it had never happened.

"Just leave it to me and he won't bother us again."

The voice echoed all around Sora, coming from somewhere in the distance, and yet it was unmistakeable to him. "Pete?" he called. "What are you doing here?" If Pete heard him, he didn't respond. "Pete!" he yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth to try and get his attention. All that came back was his echo. It didn't matter that Pete had been his enemy. In this place, Sora would take any company. Anything not to be alone.

A chill wind whipped up and Sora wrapped his arms around his chest, rubbing them to keep warm and he searched the darkness to find somewhere to go and take shelter. Loneliness crept in and he called out again. "Hello? Is anyone there?" No response but his own voice. "Kairi? Braxis? Anybody?" Nothing. The only sound was the wind as it picked up, howling and raging against him. The sound grew so loud he was forced to cover his ears.

Then, just as sudden as it had started, the wind stopped again. A single point of light shone in the darkness above like the lone star in the night sky on a stormy night on the islands. "One who knows nothing can understand nothing." Sora knew that voice and that line.

The false Ansem's taunt struck a nerve with Sora. "No! You're dead!" He was ready for a fight, but the Keyblade vanished and would not return.

The fake Ansem's voice droned on. "In deepest darkness, there is always light. Likewise, in brightest light, powerful darkness still festers. Even in you, Sora. Stray too close to the darkness and it will consume you like a brush fire. Even you will not be able to stop it."

"No! I won't let that happen!"

"But you already have. You will become the destroyer of worlds and you will never find your way back on your own..." The voice faded with the last and the star's light blinked out.

"Hey! Come back here!" Sora tried to run after it, but the murky darkness clung to his legs and made each step an effort.

"Sora..." Kairi's mournful voice drifted to him, reminding him of when Destiny Islands had been destroyed and he'd found her at their secret place, right before she put her heart in his.

"Kairi?" He turned to his right, seeing her standing, facing away from him. He slogged toward her, each step tiring him more than the last. The muck was getting thicker. As he got close, he saw that she was in an outfit similar to the one she'd worn that fateful day, and it seemed painfully stretched along her body, at least two sizes to small for her now. "Where are we?"

"No."

"No? Kairi, that doesn't make sense."

"No..."

"Kairi? Are you alright?" _Why won't she look at me?_ He took one more hesitant step toward her and reached for her shoulder.

Kairi spun in place, but it wasn't Kairi's face anymore. Instead, it was a middle-aged woman with haunting yellow eyes whose face was wrinkled beyond her years. The hair was now think, black and shoulder-length, and the tendrils lashed at Sora. "No!" she shrieked, the sound running up his spine as her eyes glowed, beams of yellow shooting at Sora. She snatched at him, talons that had been fingers tearing into his arm. Sora cried out in terror and pain and fell back into the muck. She stood over him, cackling in long black robes, and faded away before his eyes, her laugh lasting much longer than she did.

Sora took a moment to let his heart stop pounding, and winced the first time he moved, pain running up and down his right arm. It hurt to move it and he could feel the blood trickling down it. He tried to use his good arm to free himself, but the muck enveloped it, creeping up both arms and preventing him from rising. The liquid ran over his legs and torso, securing him to the ground and began creeping up his chest. Sora struggled in panic, but could not get out.

A dark flame burst in front of him and Maleficent stood there, grinning down at his plight. "Take him to the castle," she said, her voice sounding oddly hollow. His curiosity didn't last long and was replaced by fear as a Darkside rose up behind her, reaching down for him. Sora could not get away as the hand pressed down on him, forcing him down into the muck. He gasped for air before he was plunged down into the thick darkness, his eyes clamped shut.

After a moment, he could breathe again and he cracked his eyes open. He found himself in a long carpeted hallway that he couldn't see the end of in either direction. Lit candles sat in sconces that lined both sides of the hall and continued on as far as he could see. Between each sconce was a door and each had a knocker of a different kind on it. He checked his right arm, and it functioned fine now. _What kind of place did I fall into?_

He strained to hear something coming from any of the doors, but the only sound, other than a soft rumble in the distance, came from the candles as the flames crackled until a loud cackle echoed around him. "You may be the one to open the door to the light, but can you find it in time?" The false Ansem's taunt cut deep and he laughed at Sora's dismay. _There have to be hundreds of doors here. Maybe thousands._ He walked over to one door, knocking, but no response came. He tried yanking on the handle, but it wouldn't budge. He moved on down the corridor, trying one after another the same way, but all he got from it was exhaustion. Sora kicked the last one he tried in frustration and sat down next to it, wiping the sweat from his forehead. He couldn't just keep trying every one. If he got to one end of this hall and none were right, he'd lose track of where he started. The rumble in the distance was getting louder and though Sora couldn't say how he knew it, he was running out of time.

"That's not like you Sora."

"Riku?" Sora stood, looking for any sign of his friend. He knew he needed someone to help, now more than ever.

"Kairi's counting on you. Are you just going to give up?"

"I...I can't do it alone! Help me!"

"I can't do that. Not this time. This task is yours and yours alone. Just remember..." But what Sora was supposed to remember was drowned out by the maniacal laughter that ran down the halls. The rumbling grew to deafening proportions and the hall began to close in on him. Determination met fear as Sora began trying doors as fast as he could. Candles fell out of the sconces, igniting the carpet in a burst of flame. Smoke filled the hall, causing Sora to cough and gag. Sora became desperate as the burning hall grew narrow, looking for any way out.

Finally, one of the doors swung open and it was just enough that Sora could fit between the door and its frame. He threw himself through as soon as he could, the door crunching as the halls met, slamming together and leaving Sora in darkness once again. He stood up, unable to see much beyond himself in this darkness, but there was something calming about it this time. He was completely bare now, save for some black marks on his arms. He should have been afraid, but he wasn't. A soft female voice called out to him, telling him it was all right. No one would judge him in the dark. There was no need for fear ever again. He was free now.

A soft blue light formed in front of him, and he walked toward it as it started to form into that of the woman calling him. He reached out, wanting to embrace her, to accept what she offered him and to finally be free of his burdens and his fear. The light started to embrace him, and it felt like arms wrapping around him as the female voice began calming him as a mother would to a frightened child. "It's all right now. You're safe with me."

"Traitor!" The glow vanished in a flash and Sora looked up in time to see a young man with short black hair charging at him. He had no time to even try to defend himself as the man buried a Keyblade in his chest. Sora gasped, blood dripping from his lips, and he could see the hatred in the young man's hazel eyes as well as another emotion: regret. It was the last thing Sora saw before he slipped away and his eyes closed as death came for him.

Sora bolted upright, gasping and clutching a sheet to his body. Sweat pored down his face and he wiped it from his eyes. He checked his chest to make sure there wasn't a hole in it and realized he wasn't wearing anything but his boxers. He blushed, looking around and found his clothes neatly laid out and took a minute to dress himself. As he did, he noticed that there were strange black marks on his arms like in his dream. He touched the black, but it didn't hurt, and there weren't marks anywhere else on his body. _That's strange._

The room he was in was a stale white that held a familiarity he'd only felt once before when Kairi had recognized Hollow Bastion. The room was bare save for the bed and a window. He walked to it, confirming what he'd began to suspect as he stared at the neon lights of the buildings that were otherwise shrouded in darkness. He was in the castle of the World That Never Was. _Am I still dreaming? _He pinched himself to make sure it was not a dream and yelped. He had no idea how he'd arrived in the castle, but if that was the case... _I think this room...may have been Roxas' _ It was a bit sad, actually. Sora couldn't imagine what it must have been like to live each day in such a barren room. _At least for a short time in Twilight Town, he got to have a real home._

He mentally shook himself from his thoughts, remembering that Maleficent and Pete should still be here. They'd stayed behind to deal with the Heartless and he got the feeling she intended to stay. He walked to the door, expecting it to be locked, but it opened with ease. "Overconfident, isn't she?" he said to himself. "Well, might as well take the invitation." He grinned, summoning the Ultima Weapon. If Maleficent was behind any of the problems so far, he intended to crash the party.

The halls had an eerie quiet to them this time, the only sound for a while were his own footsteps echoing of the walls. No Heartless or Nobodies to fend off. No Organization members getting in his way. And while he was looking for Kairi, there wasn't the fear or panic he'd had before. Sora now trusted Kairi to take care of herself. Now he just wanted her back by his side. So when loud clanging noises drew his attention, he decided he should find out if his hosts were making them, heading toward the sound.

The room he found had been converted to a large dining room and at the ends of a large, long, rectangular table were Pete and Maleficent. Sora hid behind a pillar as he slipped into the room, wanting to know what they were up to before he charged in. Maybe he could find where Kairi was. Pete was chowing down on his meal, stuffing food in his face faster than he could swallow it and tossing plates all over when he was done, while Maleficent's way of eating was the very definition of refined. "Must you eat like such a pig?"

Pete ignored her for a second, downing a large mug as the liquid sloshed all over his face, then wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. "I thought the whole point of this here table was so I's could eat my way and you could eat yours."

Maleficent took a sip of wine from her glass. "True, but you're being rude in front of our guest." She set the glass down, gripped her staff as she stood and turned to where Sora was. "Won't you join us, Sora?"

"Maleficent," Sora hissed, his Keyblade at the ready. "Where's Kairi?"

"Such manners," Maleficent said with disdain, "drawing a weapon on the person who rescued you. Perhaps I should have left you to the Heartless instead of bringing you into my castle."

"You brought...?" That didn't make sense. Maleficent didn't do anything for someone unless it furthered her agenda. He looked down, seeing the dark marks on his arms. "What are you doing to me? Are you trying to turn me into a Heartless again?" Maleficent's grin widened and they both laughed at him. "What's so funny?"

"Kid, yous got it all wrong. Maleficent may be the strongest around, but even she can't do that to you."

"What my inarticulate minion is trying to say is that marks like that come from immersing yourself in darkness for a prolonged period of time. I'm surprised that's all the darkness you bear after falling from the Heart's Paths. However, as long as your heart is strong enough, you should not have such a problem again. After all, those marks fade with time."

"And how did you know where I was?"

"It was a simple deduction given your state and how you arrived. And your heart must be strong if it led you here instead of to oblivion."

Maleficent walked toward him, unfazed as he tensed when she approached. He was getting more confused by the moment. _My heart...brought me here?_ The only reason he could think it would was because of Roxas. He tried to remember what happened exactly when he fell. He had heard Kairi scream his name, but after that, his memory of the fall was a blank. The only thing he remembered from before he woke were small pieces of the dream, like the darkness on his arm, and even that had faded from him. It hurt to try and recall more than that. When he gave up trying, he realized he was walking through the halls, Maleficent by his side. Confusion led to fear. "Where...?"

"Relax, child. When trying to pierce the darkness once it has clouded one's memory, one tends to wander." She cut off his question. "I haven't survived the darkness this long without being aware of what it can do."

Sora wasn't surprised, though he'd seen just how the darkness could destroy someone who studied it too closely or tried to embrace it. Those memories made him shudder. Sora decided to get another question answered instead and stopped, letting her walk a few steps in front of him. "So why help me at all? You don't doing anything just to be helpful."

"Sora, you wound me."

"Yeah, right."

Maleficent chuckled. "Ah, the brashness of youth. Let's just say that having someone like you in my debt was an opportunity I couldn't pass up." She turned around, facing him with a smile on her face. "And if I could convince you to join me now that you've had a taste of true darkness..."

"Not a chance! The last time you did that, you poisoned my friendship with Riku!" Sora swung his hand out to punctuate his words.

"So be it. Eventually, all who oppose me come to rue that decision," she said, her grin fading. "For now, I'll be satisfied with seeing the effects of darkness on someone so pure...for as little time as it will last." She motioned to his arms, where the black was already fading. "After all, you cannot leave without using the Heart's Paths again and that mark will draw the darkness to you like a moth to a flame there. Best wait here and leave your friends to their troubles."

_Kairi._ Maleficent knew something was going on with her. He could tell. He needed to get to her, but he didn't dare use the Heart's Paths. Not if Maleficent was telling the truth about the darkness he bore. "Do you know how to get to her? Where she is?"

"What's this? The mighty Sora, asking for my help?" She leaned down, her face close to his. "As you put it, my help has a price." Sora winced, not liking her tone. "Of course, if you reject my offer, you might not see her again."

"What do you mean?" Sora said, angry with her taunts. "Where is she? Is she here?"

"Not in this world, she isn't."

Sora bit his lip, turning his head away from her. As much as he believed Kairi could take care of herself, he got the feeling Maleficent meant what she said about him never seeing her again. And that thought tore at his heart. "Are you sure you can get me to her?"

"I can, if that's what you desire."

"And what would you ask in return?"

Maleficent chuckled again, standing up and holding out her hand. A dark flame exploded in her hand and within the flame, he saw a plain necklace of silver and gold with a small ruby amulet hanging from the chain. "I want you to find this during your journeys and return it to me. It holds some of my lost power in it and I must have it back."

"That's it?" Maleficent had been powerful before. He didn't want to think about dealing with her when she was stronger.

"That's all."

_I suppose if she does get stronger, I'll just defeat her again and take it back. And I have Kairi and Riku...maybe even Braxis to stop her if she does._ It was a weak case at best. But Kairi was worth it and more. "Alright, but just to find Kairi."

"Of course, dear boy. Just remember this. I can send you to her, but I can't bring you back. Of course, by then, the Heart's Paths will take you where you need to go." She gripped her staff and raised her arms, a portal of pure darkness appearing in the hall. She moved behind him, her hand resting on his shoulder. "Now, focus solely on her, and this portal will take you to her."

He tried to do as she asked, but she gripped his shoulder tightly, dark energy rushing through him. She yelled at him to focus, and he thought of her when he and Riku had returned to the island and how glad she'd been to see them all right. Maleficent shoved him in the back and he stumbled into the portal, a rush going through him. He felt as though he was being yanked in several directions, but he kept walking forward, determined more than ever to get to Kairi again. To be back with her. An opening appeared in front of him and he hurried for it, barely keeping his balance. He could see her. Kairi was waiting.

He stepped through the opening, expecting her to embrace him, but all she did was look at him in shock. He was confused and scratched his head. "Kairi? Are you okay?"

Kairi opened her mouth, then closed it again as her Keyblade dropped from her hand. "Sora...what happened to your face?"

Sora blinked. "What do you mean?" Kairi tried to say something, but no words came out. He looked around this new misty place, trying to see if he could find something that reflected. He finally saw a small pool and hurried over, shocked at what he saw. He reached up to his face, running his finger from his hairline above his right eye down to his chin, seeing that everything below that line and to his neck was covered in darkness.

* * *

"Maleficent. Why'd you keep me from pummeling the brat when we first found him? Has that trinket really got some of your power?"

Maleficent closed her eyes. She hadn't even had the chance to celebrate her newest triumph before this bunglar came and ruined her peace. "The trinket, as you call it, is just that. Nothing more."

"Huh? Why send him after it then? I don't get it."

"I'm not surprised you don't. You have no vision of the future." She breezed past him, a smile creeping on her face. "I sent him on that wild goose chase to make sure he'd use the Heart's Paths to go look for it."

Pete scratched his head and followed, his mismatched armor clanking as he did. "Is this Heart's Paths something special?"

"You might say that. You see, Sora would normally be more resistant to the darkness. However, he is divided, his heart weakened. Now the darkness has nested within him. Each time he uses the Paths, his heart will grow closer to darkness and now that he's fallen in it, the darkness in his heart will resonate with it. Soon, he'll be more in tune with the darkness than even I am."

"But...won't that make him more dangerous? I think I shoulda just offed him right away."

"That's because you're a shortsighted thug. That attitude is what got you locked away to begin with. If it hadn't been for me, you'd still be languishing there, but I could see what use you could be, just like Sora will be for me soon enough." She laughed, a hearty evil laugh that resonated throughout the castle. "You see, if you kill a Keyblade wielder, another will just take his place, even for one like Sora. However, when I sent him through, I marked him in such a way that when he loses himself to darkness, he will come back to find me and serve me. With a minion that powerful at my disposal, all worlds will soon be mine and everyone will bow to me!"


	9. Chapter 8

_**Kingdom Hearts: Soul Crossed**_

**Chapter 8: The Darkwing Before the Dawn**

**Radiant Garden**

The wind whipped up and around Maris as she sauntered up along the cliffs surrounding the Great Maw, swirling her red hair out and around her as though it was trying to hold her tight. She could see the destruction the huge Whimsy had left behind after its fight with those three pests. It was too bad the creature had been damaged so heavily by the brats, but at least she could use it again if needs be. After all, the Soulless weren't the only creatures she'd learned to command. Like Restin, all four bowed before her for now, making her feel like the queen Restin said she was.

Silver eyes scanned for Vic, and she could fathom a guess why he'd called her out here instead of following the decrepit gummi ship Cid had given them. Even if she was wrong, Maris felt she could deal with the bounty hunter. If not, she didn't deserve to be Restin's own.

Footsteps crunched in gravel as the big man approached her, that ridiculous sword of his strapped to his back. _That's a good sign._ Vic had made no attempt to mask his approach. She took that to mean he didn't want her head just yet. "Did we really have to meet out where any manner of dark creature might find us?"

"Minions of the dark all fall the same," he said in a deep voice. "Be they Heartless, Nobody, or someone trying to benefit from them."

"And is that what you think I'm doing?" It was a rhetorical question. His tone was unmistakable.

Vic folded his arms across his broad chest. "You lied to me. The only reason you aren't dead is that I mean to find out why."

_So that's it. He's definitely confident in his ability to handle me._ She saw no reason to admit any of her real role to one like him though. "And what exactly did I lie about, bounty hunter?"

"Those three aren't part of the darkness. They fought to stop it."

"Well, that's partially true," she said, her face a mask as it always was when she danced with words. "They did fight the Whimsy, but if you notice, they didn't destroy it and instead allowed it to escape." She trudged up near the edge, turning her back to him. Vic was too honorable to stab her in the back, and she wanted to show just how unconcerned she was with him. Her hand swept out broadly over the edge, indicating the massive damage all around. "I mean, it was such a large target. It's hard to believe the three of them couldn't get rid of it."

She turned to face him, a small smile on her face. "And then there was the matter of the Heartless. Cid's security system has kept them out of the city for months, and now they finally get in once those three arrive? Surely the coincidence of **that** didn't escape you." Her grin widened as she emphasized that part.

She walked up to him, getting close to show she did not worry. "And now that they've gone? The Heartless are **flocking** into the city in droves. It's all Cid and the others can do to keep them at bay and away from the citizens of the Garden." She reached up, patting his shoulder, then dropped her hand as he scowled at her. "I see their act did fool you, but I've seen it before. Pretending to be heroes and destroying some minions, but in truth leading the darkness in under the Garden's very nose. It's a very elaborate scheme, but since it absolves them of blame, why not do it?" In truth, on one world that had been her scheme, so she could attest to its effectiveness, but as long as those three remained unaware of the tracker on the blonde boy Nobody, no one could disprove her lie.

"You could be right, but I'm not convinced you are yet. Aerith and Leon trust them."

"Trust is easily betrayed, Vic. As I said, with them, it's hard to believe your eyes. But I know them, and am familiar with those they destroyed. It takes a lot of cunning and guile to create the downfall of so many by themselves."

Vic scowled, but she could see he was mulling it over. "I told you before. Don't take my word for it. Follow them for as long as you like. In the end, the truth will win out. Those three are tied to the darkness, and in the end, any world they visit will explode in it." She reached into her pocket, pulling out a worn parchment. "If you need more proof, just watch. They are seeking these items, and I guarantee they will take them from the worlds under the guise of it being important to keep the darkness from winning. But these items are darkness attractors on their own and when combined, all worlds are in peril."

Vic snatched the parchment up, his dark eyes looking the items over. "I'll keep this for now."

Maris waved him off. "Be my guest. I have no use for such accursed items." Another partial truth. Teren was after those pieces, for reasons Maris had yet to discover. That her group was helping him was not something the hunter needed to know.

Vic folded it, slipping it into his pocket. "I warn you. Either you or these three will be ended by the time I'm done. Pray it isn't you."

"It won't be. I guarantee it." Maris watched him go, not moving from the cliff edge. She meant that part for certain. Vic might have that blasted sword, but she'd show him the folly of drawing it against her when she'd bury it in his chest. Vic was no Keyblade wielder, and she'd already held Riku off without much fuss. She intended to follow him and make sure he didn't kill the silver-haired boy and just the two Nobodies. After all, she could take Riku's soul any time while he was alive. Even if he was mortally wounded. And the thought of that made her start to whistle as she walked back to the castle town.

* * *

The waves crashed upon the white sand, the water climbing up to Namine's toes and swirling around and between them before receding back. The noonday sun beat down from above, warming her up in her white one-piece bathing suit. She kept her eyes closed, the sound and warmth soothing her soul. _ This is the life I've been missing,_ she thought, her fingers making small swirls to either side of her in slow movements. _I could stay on these islands forever now._

"Are you going to lounge here all day?"

Namine cracked her eyes open, staring into the blue-eyed redhead's face. "C'mon Kairi. The weather's nice and I want to just enjoy it."

Kairi giggled a little. "Lazy. Roxas at least knows how to have fun." She glanced over her shoulder where the gang was setting up a volleyball net. Sora and Roxas were arguing about how best to go about it, though they were all smiles. Tidus was trying to regale Selphie with a tale of something he found on one of the smaller islands, while Riku and Wakka were talking and laughing at Sora and Roxas.

Namine gave Kairi a wry look. "You have a strange definition of fun."

Kairi shrugged. "Once it's up, it will be."

Namine laughed. "If you leave those two in charge, it'll be dark by the time they're done. Should we go give them some help?"

Kairi nodded, offering a hand that Namine took. She smiled as they walked over. "Need us fragile little flowers to lend a hand, boys?"

"Yeah, Kairi. Just show Roxas that I'm right," Sora said, ignoring the dirty look sent his way.

"Don't worry. We'll fix what you ruined," Namine said, which earned laughter from some of her friends. She was smiling wide now, and laughing along with them as she knelt to help adjust the poles. Her head started to ache for a moment, and the sand seemed to shift out around her in odd ways, as though someone was gripping a canvas she was painting on and tearing it outward. There was a sound like static for a moment before everything shifted back as though nothing went wrong. She sighed, wondering if she was getting too much sun. "You got it straight, Kairi?"

There was a hushed silence, and she looked up at Riku, who was now standing closer to her. "Namine...again?"

Namine blinked, looking around at some solemn faces. She also noticed one thing. Kairi wasn't there anymore. "What?" she said, confusion setting in.

"Kairi's gone, Namine. Has been for some time." He put his hand to her forehead. "You're a little warm. Have you been feeling disoriented?"

"A little..." she said, though she was starting to have trouble remembering how she'd gotten to the islands to begin with. She opened her mouth to ask, and Riku's face froze. The white noise sound roared in her ears as the beach and her friends glitched as though part of some computer screen. Namine tried to call for the Ink Caster, wondering what had gone wrong, when she was lying on the beach again.

Fear clenched in at her and she sat up, gasping and looking around. It was sunset now and a sharp wind was rushing around. She clutched her hands to her body. _What is going on?_ There was no one on the beach this time, and she stood up, hurrying down the beach. "Hello? Anybody?" she cried.

"Hey!" Roxas called, and she turned, falling into his arms, tears splashing against his bare chest. "What happened? Are you okay?"

"I don't know. One minute I was fine, and the next, everything changed. And I'm not sure where everyone went. I...I'm scared, Roxas."

"Shh...it's alright, Kairi. You're safe at home."

"Kairi?" Namine said, backing up and out of his arms. "No, I'm...I'm..." It was getting hard to remember her name now, and Roxas seemed so sincere. But she ran from him, fleeing. The static chased her, roaring like a heavy wind and she clamped her hands over her ears. She tripped, falling to the sand and coughing, but forcing herself back to her feet.

Her heart leapt to her throat. Darkness had flooded the islands, the trees twisted and mangled. Bodies lay scattered around her, vanishing into hearts faster than she could count. She spun, hoping not to find anything, and a person Namine didn't know ran towards her, yelling for help as she was chased by Shadows and Soldiers. Behind them, a wave of Heartless flowed along, engulfing anything they touched.

Namine ran toward the person, determined to help, when they froze mid-run. It was like she was watching a video, but someone kept pausing and rewinding, changing the movie each time. "What's going on?" she cried.

"You are seeing possibilities," a voice said. Namine spun around, Ink Caster finally appearing in her hands. She was only mildly surprised to see herself back in the black outfit she'd taken from Kairi's room again. The figure was cloaked in shadows and darkness, and the only thing she could make out was that it was female by the voice, even with it echoing slightly as she spoke. "Destiny tells us of specific things that will happen, but everything else...that is up to the decisions we make."

"What are you talking about?" Namine said, gripping her staff and watching the dark woman carefully in case she tried something else. "And why did Roxas think I was Kairi?"

"Destiny says that you will return to the islands, just as it says that Sora will open the door to light, but which you will return is unknown yet."

"Which me? That doesn't make any sense. I'm only me. Namine."

"You are, but you are also Kairi. Part of her soul resides within you now, so you and she are tied. That soul cannot stay stretched forever, though." The woman walked closer, staring at her with eyes hidden by shadow. "The soul that is Kairi's will have to return to one of you, and the personality of the one it does will be the one people will know as Kairi from then on. Time is running out, child. For one or both of you. And the longer the rift takes to repair, the closer fate comes to the scene you saw last and Kairi's demise, whichever of you Kairi is at that point."

_That's why Roxas thought I was Kairi..._ It wasn't a pleasant thought. She never wanted to steal Kairi's life. What she wanted was the first reality she'd been shown.

"There is a way to have the life you wanted, and a way for both you and Kairi to return," she said, giving voice to her own thoughts. "All you would need is a heart to go with the part of you that has been created since you both were separated, as you have the beginnings of your own soul as well."

"You mean steal one," Namine said flatly. "No thanks. I am not going to take someone else's life to have one of my own." She turned away from the woman.

"Even if it would go to waste otherwise?"

Namine stopped, spinning back. "I...I suppose...that's a different case." She didn't like the temptation the woman was offering. It was too easy to say that it would go to waste, but there was a tone in the woman's words that she didn't trust. "I would have to see what happened and then make up my mind."

Even through the shadows, Namine felt the woman was smiling which sent shivers through her. "Then perhaps it's time." She took a step forward and shoved Namine. She was falling back, but instead of hitting the beach, she kept falling deep down into darkness, spinning and tumbling until she thought there might be nothing below her at all.

She spun over and finally her feet hit the ground with a clink. She stood up, trying to peer around and find where she was and what she landed on. Light erupted from beneath her and she had to shield her eyes as the darkness fled from it. When she dared to look again, she was standing on a giant stained glass window. It was done in tones of light blue and white. There were circles going around the main portion that held different members of the Organization's faces, but there were four circles closer to the middle that were larger. One was of Axel, one of Xemnas, one of Roxas and the last was of her. The main picture was of a girl with short, cropped, black hair in an Organization cloak who was holding a Kingdom Key keyblade across her lap, her blue eyes tinged with sorrow. Namine was certain she knew the girl, but a name just wouldn't come. However, a voice came from just outside the circle of light. A voice from her past.

_Namin__é__, will you watch over Roxas once I'm gone? You won't be alone. I asked somebody else to look after him, too. It's just...there isn't anything else I can do for him._

"Memories. They are such precious things." Namine started. The woman shrouded in darkness stood on the opposite end of the circle from her, and her tone seemed almost mocking. "It is such a shame when the mind fails us. But then, you should know all about that."

"Shut up!" Namine cried, the words hitting a sore spot for her. "I did all I could to repair that!"

"And now your drawing fails you. It is a shame that something that was such a part of you is now gone, just like the memories you stole."

Anger flushed through Namine. "Did you bring me down here just to taunt me with a face I don't remember and crimes I worked so hard to fix?"

"I brought you here to show you what you need to remember," she said, arm sweeping wide. "This realm is the best way for me to show it."

_Need to remember? _Namine was getting tired of the games. "Why is it so important?"

"You will know in time. As you will get to know me."

"And what do you mean by that?"

The woman smiled behind the darkness. "When you are ready, you will seek me out. I have much to teach you, and in such a short time, I'm afraid." She walked across to Namine, though she still kept her distance.

Namine glowered. "Who **are** you? And why should I trust someone who hides in shadows?"

The woman giggled. "You will know my name when you are ready, not divided as you are now. And I am only a shadow because I cannot reach your heart completely in such a blossoming stage." She spread her arms wide, keeping herself as non-threatening as possible. "For now, help your friends, and try to remember."

Namine frowned, staring down at the girl in the window. She wished she had her sketch pad with her, but she was trying to trace points of the girl's face in her mind. So it was startling when the woman cried "Namine! Look out!"

Namine looked up in time to see a staff slicing straight down and she fell back to avoid it. She rolled away, coming up in a crouch, her own staff brought up to block the second attack. She gaped at her attacker, a heartless that looked exactly like her. The dark version of herself held a staff identical to the Ink Caster and was trying to force her to the ground. She had to shove hard to get the girl to back off. "What the...?"

The other woman had vanished, leaving the battle just to her and she was hard pressed to keep away from the Heartless girl. She cast a fireball at the girl, who leapt back to avoid it and grinned. She called lightning down on Namine, which pelted all around as Namine dodged. Every blow Namine tried, the Heartless countered, and Namine was hard-pressed to do the same. Suddenly, the Heartless girl grinned, a knowing look on her face, and slammed her staff to the ground. There was a sound of glass shattering and suddenly Namine was falling again, down, down...

Namine woke in her bed, staring around wildly as she gasped for air. It took a moment for her to realize she was aboard the Highwind, Cid's gummi ship, and that there were no Heartless in the room. "Just a dream..." she whispered. She tossed the covers to the side, anger and fear driving her to wash her face and get herself dressed. She needed to be up and about before she dwelled too long on nightmares, though it was very hard to recall very much about it. She remembered a woman and Destiny Islands, and a voice that she knew but didn't. It was fading too fast, slipping through her hands like sands in the hourglass. "Running out of time," she said aloud, and though it sounded right, she couldn't figure out why time was so short.

Since no one had paged her, it meant the auto-pilot was still engaged. The Heartless had not harassed them much on this flight, which they had been very grateful for. She did not want to crash into the next world. But it also meant they had not arrived yet, and Namine did not want to dwell on a half-remembered dream and mysterious voices right now.

Thankfully, the Highwind was a large enough gummi ship to accommodate a small kitchen. Namine was feeling a bit hungry, and some food might calm her fears. When she reached it, she was surprised to find Riku already there, sitting at the table, his head laid back so he was staring at the ceiling. He glanced at her as she walked in. "Couldn't sleep?" Namine shook her head. Riku sighed. "Yeah, me neither. Kept having bad dreams."

A loud yawn came from behind Namine and she turned to see Roxas trudging sleepily in. "Make that three..." He yawned again. "...three of us. I kept having funky dreams about a girl."

"Thinking about our dance?" Namine tried to tease, though something odd was tingling in the back of her mind.

Roxas shook his head. "No, not like that. I was back in the Castle That Never Was. And there was this girl in the Organization. Another member, though it wasn't Larxene, which doesn't make any sense. Other than Larxene, there weren't any other female members. I don't even know if she had a name, but she had short, black hair that reminds me of yours." He looked embarrassed. "Wishful thinking, right?"

Namine felt like she'd been kicked in the gut. Something else was coming back. "No. There was someone like that in my dreams too."

"No way. You aren't joking with me?"

Namine shook her head. She was trying to recall more and couldn't, but it seemed very odd that they were both dreaming about the same girl. "I know she was there, but that's about all I can remember."

"Make it three of us," Riku said, his brow furrowed. "I was on the Islands again, and I was speaking to her. I don't remember what about. But I'm certain I've never met her before."

"All I heard...was her voice," Namine said with a bit of hesitation, "but there was some sort of picture of her." She shook her head.

Roxas looked pale. "How could we all be dreaming of the same girl, one who doesn't exist?"

Riku looked concerned. "Could someone be messing with our memories, like you did to Sora?" he asked Namine.

Namine shrugged her shoulders. "It's possible. But what if someone did before, and the real memories are coming back? We can't tell right now. All we can do is keep going and find the truth out together."

Riku nodded, though he seemed truly shaken for only the second time she'd known him. "Let's try and get some more sleep then. We'll be at the world before we know it and we'll need to be alert and ready for whatever comes."

Namine nodded, but as she headed back to her room, she wondered if she'd be able to get back to sleep at all after what they'd learned. She soon learned that exhaustion could overcome any mixed emotion she had as she laid back down and was soon deep in a dreamless sleep.

* * *

**St. Kanard**

Roxas wanted to know why he had to be the plain old duck.

The world of St. Kanard was one of humanized animals with most of them being birds. Despite the need to hurry and stop Restin, Riku had insisted on preserving the world order. Namine was able to use her magic to provide disguises for them, and she'd chosen a bird form for each of them. Roxas just wondered why his was the only one that was so ordinary.

Riku was in the form of a peregrine falcon, grey feathers and a piercing beak. The Way to Dawn hung at his side, ready to be used at a moment's notice. He wasn't taking any chances this time. Namine had chosen a dove's form, her white feathers pristine and sleek and a sharp contrast to her black dress. She had put the Ink Caster away after creating their disguises, not wanting to alarm anyone and had unsuccessfully tried to convince Riku to do the same. It had soured her mood some, and that was the only reason Roxas hadn't complained to her.

In truth, he didn't think a duck was a bad form. Donald was the same and one of the most powerful magicians he'd ever seen. It just paled compared to the cooler forms Namine had chosen for herself and Riku. If he didn't know that he shouldn't have emotions, he'd have guessed he was jealous.

"Now remember Roxas. For now, just keep an eye out for anything suspicious or clues to what Restin is looking for. Don't do anything until we meet up again. Just see if you can find out if a piece like this is here." Riku said, as though Roxas hadn't heard the instructions the first three times.

"I've got that," he retorted, annoyed, as he ran fingers through the feathers on his head. "Did we decide on a meeting place?"

"I think so," Namine spoke up. "There's a small park downtown. By the time we are done, we should be able to meet relatively alone."

Riku handed him a copy of the photo they had of the piece that was stolen. "One last thing. Be careful. Last thing we need is Restin catching any of us off guard. I don't want any of us to go missing." He gave one to Namine as well.

Roxas nodded. "I will. You two do the same."

He watched them both go, taking separate directions until they were out of sight. Then he tucked the photo in his breast pocket and trudged down toward the residential part of town. He let his mind wander for a bit as he walked, taking in the environment. _How can I know if anything is suspicious for this world unless I get to know it better?_ It was about as good a strategy as any other in this circumstance. It also gave him time to consider what he was feeling.

When they'd landed, he'd wanted to go with Namine. He'd given the excuse that Riku could handle any danger all by himself, but the truth was that he was wanting more and more to be as close to Namine as possible. He wondered if she felt the same about him.

The trouble was that he couldn't tell what she was feeling. Even being part of Kairi, and knowing Kairi's feelings for Sora, didn't help. Namine acted just differently enough from Kairi to make Roxas wonder, and traveling with her had made it even more confusing. _Does she like me in that way, or is it just a friend she sees in me?_ It was the not knowing that was driving him slowly crazy.

It was midday by the time he was walking through the residential area. Several different types of people were out, chatting up their neighbors or getting in some yardwork in warm weather. He looked back and forth as he walked. _Who should I ask?_

"Binkie!" A loud bellowing voice caught Roxas's attention as a canary woman poked her head up from behind a hedge, trowel in hand and dressed in a shirt and overalls that had mud splattered in some places. "Have you seen my Quackerware case?"

"Did you check in the kitchen?" she called back, adjusting the bonnet she wore while she waited for an answer.

"I think so. Maybe it got knocked under the table." Binkie gave a rueful smile as she turned back, then she noticed Roxas standing in the street. "Oh, hello dear. You look lost. Can I give you directions?"

Roxas shrugged, walking over. "Actually, I'm looking for something, not somewhere." He pulled out the photo to show her. "I'm looking for a companion piece to this. You wouldn't happen to have seen anything like it around here, would you?"

Binkie took a long look at it, then shook her head. "I'm afraid not. Sorry."

Roxas was about to pocket the photo and leave when the door to the house next door slammed open and out ran a young girl in a light-purple shit with a number 1 in white on the front who looked about nine years old just ahead of a loud shout. "Gosalyn Mallard! You get back here this instant!"

Gosalyn spun on her heels, the redhead's pigtails whipping around violently. "I am going and you can't stop me!"

She stomped off in a huff as a middle-aged duck wearing a sleeveless sweater in two shades of green with a pink shirt underneath raced out, though too slow to stop the hot-headed child. "If I have to catch you, you're grounded for a year, young lady!" He was going to yell more, then paused when he saw that had an audience, and that Gosalyn was already out of sight, and he walked back to the door, grumbling the whole way as he slammed it shut.

"Oh my," Binkie said softly, seeming to forget Roxas was there, "I wonder what that was all about."

The door to Binkie's house opened and a tall, fat duck in a green shirt with watermelon slices and bananas on it waddled out. "I can't find it, Binkums. I hope Tank's not done something with it..." He looked over at Roxas. "Howdy. Are you one of our new neighbors?"

"No," Binkie said, smiling. "This nice young man was just looking for something."

"Really? Let me see." He grabbed the photo Roxas pulled out, turning it one way, then another as he scratched his head. "It looks familiar. I think Honker was going on about something like this." He looked up just as the middle-aged duck from next door had stormed back out, car keys in hand. "Hey Drake!"

The middle-aged duck paused. "Yes Herb?" he said, in a tone that Roxas was certain said that he'd rather not have asked but was being polite.

Herb took no notice. "You took the kids to the museum last week, right?" Drake nodded wearily. Herb handed him the photo. "Doesn't this look like that Eye of someone-or-other that they just found? The one Honker was so interested in?"

Drake snatched the photo and Roxas hoped he wouldn't tear it, but after just glancing once, he brought it closer, his voice taking on a different tone. "Yeah..." he said, stroking his chin, "this does look similar to the Eye of Quacktzlcoatl that they unearthed on the dig." His interest was definitely piqued, and he glanced sideways at Roxas. "Where'd you find this piece, hm?"

Roxas's eyes narrowed. "Uhm...I didn't. It belonged to my great grandfather," he said, going with the cover story they'd set up for why they were looking for it after stumbling for a moment. "My dad heard a rumor something similar had arrived here and asked me to see if it was true."

Drake shrugged and handed back the photo. "Well, if you are looking, the St. Kanard Museum has the Eye on display right now."

Roxas nodded. "Thanks. I'll have to chat with the museum curator and see if he thinks they might match." Deep down, he was wondering what they'd be able to do to get it before Restin did if it was the same as the stolen piece. He knew Restin would stop at nothing to get it. "Could you tell me how to get there?"

"Sure! I pass it on my sales route every day," Herb said, smiling. He gave Roxas detailed directions and Roxas thanked all three of them. He hurried off, wanting to get to the museum and check on it before he was supposed to meet with Riku and Namine. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that Drake was burning his gaze into Roxas' back the whole way until he was out of sight.

The St. Kanard museum was a humongous building of stone columns and broad archways that allowed in the masses that filled its halls during the late afternoon. The Eye of Quacktzcoatl was apparently a major find that had attracted the curious denizens of the city to see the splendor. Unfortunately for Roxas, this meant that the museum was charging for admittance and Roxas did not have any munny to pay for a ticket and no amount of begging was going to change the guard's mind. "Come back when your parents can afford to pay your way," he said snidely and shooed him away so he could admit the next paying customer.

Roxas stormed off around the side, shoving his hands in his pockets. He really felt he could have made a breakthrough, if only he could get a look to confirm it was right. Instead, he'd have to wait until Namine and Riku met him at the park before they could think up a way to check it out. After all, he didn't know the museum well enough to sneak in.

"Hurry up, will ya?" hissed a voice just as Roxas was about to turn a corner. Something in the tone caused Roxas to duck back instinctively, and he peered around to see what was going on. Two men were over by what Roxas assumed was an employee entrance. One was staring around, hands in the pockets of a large trenchcoat as he peered out from under a large hat that covered most of his face, though the blue and red jester's hat that peeked out from underneath the lookout's hat did little to keep him as inconspicuous as he wanted to be. The second was on his knees, fiddling with the lock, though the angle kept Roxas from getting a good look at him.

"Do you want me to do this without setting off the alarm?" the second sneered.

"What I want is to blow the door wide open," the first said, giggling maniacally before coughing and composing himself.

"Yes, well Negaduck said the point was not to draw attention until after we were inside," the second replied, then muttered something under his breath that Roxas didn't catch.

"Well, that wasn't very nice." The first lounged back. "You should really learn to be more relaxed. Have some fun with things. I made a little device that could do just the thing."

"You should close that big beak of yours before I staple it shut." That caused the first to shut up, though he folded his arms in a huff. "That's better. Last thing we need is you getting us caught before we're inside. Ah ha!" The second pushed the door open and the two hurried inside.

_This can't be good._ Roxas thought as he hurried after them, reaching the door to see that it was still ajar. He followed inside, pulling the door shut softly and looked around. It was definitely the employee entrance and he could see the two working on something small that they proceeded to roll through another door. There was a muffled 'Whumph' on the other side and the sounds of cries and coughing that was accompanied by what sounded like laughter, though Roxas didn't believe that could be right. The two waited, then opened the door, walking in as Roxas followed.

The section of the museum had been cleared out, leaving the artifacts in it unguarded for the thieves to pilfer, though they were focused on a large display in the middle of the room that could only have been the Eye of Quacktzlcoatl. It was a large emerald set in the middle of a stone rectangle with the same arcane markings as the item that had been stolen from the vault. If Roxas had to guess, it looked like it would fit perfectly with one of the sides.

"The gas worked like a charm," the second man said, sounding impressed.

"Laughing gas always does. Nothing like putting a large smile on people's faces, especially when you're laughing so hard you can't breathe," the first said, giggling maniacally again while bounding up to the case. He pulled out a tiny toy hammer that looked like it wouldn't do much of anything but stopped when a booming voice echoed through the room.

"I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the rain that ruins your picnic!" A plume of blue smoke burst out on the other side of the display case. "I am Darkwing Duck!" As the smoke cleared, there stood a duck in a hat, mask, cape and vest, all in purple.

While the first one stumbled back, shocked, the second looked unfazed. "Who's the bozo in the funny pajamas?"

"Bozo?" Darkwing Duck said, glaring.

The first one stood up, whipping off his trenchcoat. The duck underneath was dressed all in motley, an amalgamation of red and blue that had the duck looking every bit the court jester of old, even down to the bells hanging from his headwear. To Roxas, it was the opposite look of Kefka, but lost none of the malice. "Oh look, Darkwing Dip. Well, you aren't going to ruin my fun this time. It's PLAYTIME!" He pulled out what appeared to be a banana wearing a pair of oversized glasses and an equally large moustache that seemed to be ticking and launched it at Darkwing, who gave a quick yipe and dove away just as the banana exploded.

Darkwing rolled, pulling a strange-looking gun from under his cape as he came up. "Suck gas evil-doer." A canister shot from the gun and landed near the clown duck's feet, blue smoke hissing out. Roxas covered his mouth, trying not to breathe any in as the two villains began coughing. "I don't know what you want with the Eye, Quackerjack, but no matter how many allies you have, you demented toy-maker, I'll take all three of you down."

The first looked up, breaking off his coughing fit. "Three?" He whirled around as Roxas hurried out. "Looks like we have more than one problem."

Quackerjack gave Roxas a look. "He's just a kid. Darkwing Duck's the threat."

The first shook his head, throwing off his cloak to reveal a hawk in very familiar armor similar to Restin's, this time tinged with green. "I wouldn't bet on it. That's a Keyblade wielder."

"Oh really?" Quackerjack said, drawing out the last word. "Sounds like fun." He pulled out a doll that looked like a banana with eyes and a bucktooth grin. It wore a green shirt and pants and had the peel pulled down. "What do you think Mr. Banana Brain?" Roxas watched as the jester talked out of the side of his beak. "Time to play, Ray," he said in a higher pitched voice and then, back in his normal voice. "I knew you'd say that. You always know how to have a good time."

_He's talking to the doll? _Roxas's opinion of Quackerjack went from fear to confusion. His lack of attention was almost costly as Quackerjack reached into his pocket and pulled out some jacks, tossing them at Roxas. The ends grew into sharp blades and Roxas had to duck as they embedded in the wall behind him. Quackerjack giggled in the goofiest manner, prancing and bounding around. _Alright, time to get serious. _"Let me show you my tricks," Roxas said, both Keyblades appearing as he stared down the clown.

Roxas caused lightning to dance up and down the Keyblade in his right hand, launching it end over end as the blade flashed toward the jester. Quackerjack giggled as he bounded backward, flipping back onto his hands as the blade sliced by, slamming against the wall and rebounding to Roxas. "My, my, such a temper," Quackerjack said as he landed back on his feet, "and such interesting toys. But they're nothing compared to my special brand."

Roxas glowered, taking a step forward, then had to jump back as Darkwing flew back in a blur, slamming against the wall with a sickening crunch. The man in the armor was bouncing on one foot, smirking. "I'm beaten, but not broken," Darkwing said in a dazed tone, getting back to his feet unsteadily.

"Oh, we'll see about that," the man said, bouncing on one foot, then another, and pushed off. One moment he was there, the next he was a blur as he shot past Roxas to slam into Darkwing with high enough speed Roxas was worried Darkwing might have been seriously hurt. The caped crime fighter slumped to the ground.

"Darkwing!" Roxas cried, moving to help.

Quackerjack bounded over, landing between Roxas and the others. "I wasn't done having fun with you yet. There's so many games to play." He pulled out some twine, putting it between his hands as though to play Cat's Cradle. Roxas charged, not sure what the jester was up to and not wanting to be caught off guard again. Quackerjack beat him by a half-step, though, the string flying out and wrapping around Roxas tight. Roxas tried to snap it, but the strings were stronger than he could have imagined and he couldn't break them. Quackerjack cackled as he yanked, pulling Roxas off his feet. "Looks like I have a new toy to work with too."

"We don't have time, Quackerjack. Get the Eye and let's go."

"Oh, you're no fun, Arian," Quackerjack said, folding his arms and sulking. When the other didn't back down, Quackerjack sighed, pulling the tiny hammer back out and approaching the case. Roxas struggled against the binding, but he couldn't move. Quackerjack leaned down, examining the glass as though looking for the weak point, then reared back and slammed it into the case top. The whole room shook and every pane of glass in the room shattered at once. Quackerjack bowed as Arian walked up, but if he expected applause or congratulations, he got neither. He glowered and humphed, stalking to the side as Arian reached in, pulling out the Eye reverently. "So much work for such an antique."

"Oh, it's so much more than that. Let's go. Think you can keep them from following us?"

"Oh, I'm sure my troops will do that and more," Quackerjack said as Arian walked out with the Eye. Quackerjack was setting down little toy soldiers and winding them up. "So long, heroes," he said snidely as he pranced to the exit. "Enjoy the last few seconds of your lives."

Roxas struggled with the bindings as the toy troops walked toward him, but he couldn't get either hand free to use his Keyblade. As the soldiers lowered their muskets, pointing them at his face, Roxas stared up at his doom, unable to get away.

* * *

The twang of the bow string echoed through the section of the park as the arrow buried in the center of the target clustered around three more in the red. Usually, Gosalyn was proud of how good she was with her archery, especially in the fading light of dusk that cast shadows across her vision. Now, it was just a reminder of the argument she'd had with her father earlier today.

"Nice grouping, Gosalyn," her friend Honker said, adjusting his large glasses and appearing distinctly uncomfortable, "but shouldn't we be heading home? It's getting dark and I still have homework."

Gosalyn stuck out her tongue. "Honker, homework's such a waste of time." She said with disgust, trying to find any excuse not to go home that Honker would accept. She knew she was in deep trouble, and even though it would only get worse, she was reluctant to face it. Villains she could handle with the best of them, but her dad's wrath was something she'd rather avoid. "Let me at least try that trick shot first."

Honker sighed, but he seemed reluctant to say no to her. Gosalyn felt a little chagrined. She knew Honker didn't have many friends besides her and that he caved in to her some times because of that. However, she didn't give in as he set up the pieces. Gosalyn reached back to grab another arrow from her quiver when a shadow fell over her. "Excuse me," said a soft female voice, and Gosalyn turned to see a timid dove in a black dress. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for a friend of mine. He was supposed to meet us here." Gosalyn looked behind her to see a very intimidating teenage falcon.

"I'm sorry, but we haven't seen anyone since we've gotten here," Honker said, adjusting his glasses. "We've been practicing."

"Practicing what?" The falcon asked, looking over at them. "Just target practice?"

"Not exactly," Gosalyn said with a sly smile. "Honker, are they all set up?" Honker nodded. "Do you want to see?"

"Why not?" the falcon said, shrugging. "We can give him a little longer."

Gosalyn grinned, nocking the arrow. She sighted along the shaft, aiming for the first metal target. When she felt she had the angle and everything just right, she released. The arrow hit the first target, ricocheting to the second and third on the other side of the target, before bouncing off a fourth on the ground and imbedding itself in the straw target in the second circle.

The girl gave a soft whistle. "Not bad."

Gosalyn grimaced. "But not good enough. I need to get it closer to the bulls-eye...er...for a competition..." she added when she saw the falcon give her a look. The last thing she needed was for someone to guess who she was. Honker, her dad and Launchpad all knew, but as far as she knew that was it.

The dove and falcon exchanged a look, but said nothing. "Well, if you see our friend before you leave, would you let him know we're looking for him? He's a duck with blond hair wearing a dark shirt with a zipper under a white jacket."

"We will, but we have to get home soon," Honker said, ignoring Gosalyn scoffing at him. "I hope you find him."

"Me too," the dove said, looking a lot more worried than she was trying to let on. The two bade their goodbye and Gosalyn watched them go.

"Let's go, Honker. I want to find out what's going on. Their friend might need help."

"Gosalyn, your dad might not like that! You know how he feels about strangers."

"Honker!" Gosalyn yelled, causing Honker to shrink back. "What if he's hurt or something? I can't just do nothing." And as she turned away, she muttered under her breath, "And I am so sick of what my dad may or may not like."

Once they were packed up with all their arrows, they set out to try and find the two strangers. Gosalyn took the lead, letting Honker haul their gear. Unfortunately, the two seemed to have vanished into the fading light. "Rats," Gosalyn said, kicking at the dirt. "We lost them."

"Good," Honker said, panting. "This stuff is too heavy to be moving fast with."

Gosalyn shot him a look, but any snarky response she gave was lost when she heard maniacal laughter coming from her left. She put a finger to her bill and snuck over, ignoring Honker's worried whisper of her name as she peeked through the bushes.

"I've done it, Spike! I've done it! Oh, this will work out so much better than I planned." Gosalyn stifled a gasp. Bushroot was in the park with his pet, and odds were that the half-duck, half-plant villain was up to no good. Gosalyn peered down, trying to see what Bushroot was up to. This was the perfect chance to show her dad that she could take care of herself as Quiverwing Quack.

Spike shook his head, the mutated Venus fly trap with the personality of a puppy expressing his displeasure.

Bushroot frowned, pulling out a beaker that seemed to glow with a dark energy. "What do you mean? This formula is perfect. Once I use it to infuse my beloved plants with the same aura as those Red Nocturnes, they won't have to worry about fire anymore. Fire will actually strengthen them rather than scare them off. Wouldn't that be wonderful Spike? Then they won't have to fear a forest fire or some careless person with a cigarette. And I won't have to lose them to that carelessness. Watch." Spike shook his head again, trying to leap and snatch the beaker from Bushroot with his jaws, but Bushroot lifted it up out of Spike's reach. "Dangerous?" he said. "You're just jealous I'll have more friends." Spike didn't seem to like that, trying harder to take it from Bushroot.

Gosalyn wasn't sure what a Red Nocturne was, but she figured whatever was in that beaker would not be good for St. Kanard. Thankfully, their argument would give her a chance to change. "Honker," she whispered. "Is my costume still in the bag?"

"Yeah, but Gosalyn, remember what your dad said about fighting crime on your own."

"Honker, do you want to be my sidekick or not?" Honker nodded reluctantly. "Good, then get into costume. We have a villain to stop." She had at least some sense to make sure no one could see her change in the fading light. Once she felt assured, she dug into the pack, pulling out the green cape and matching floppy green hat with the plume of feather sticking out of the top, along with the purple mask and gloves and the shirt marked with a big white Q on the front. She slipped into the costume while Honker struggled with his as usual, which shouldn't have surprised her given the arrow hat and the heavy quiver with all the specialty arrows.

"C'mon Arrow Kid." she said, grabbing an arrow and loosing it just as Bushroot was ready to open the beaker. The head sliced just along his outstretched arm, causing him to yipe and drop the formula to the ground. Thankfully, it didn't break. "Quick, the net arrow," she hissed, taking it from Honker. She tied a rope to the arrow and fired. A net exploded from the tip, snatching up the beaker, and between the two of them, they yanked it back out of Bushroot's reach.

"Hey, no fair!" Bushroot cried as she leapt through the bushes, snatching up the net and beaker all at once. "That's mine!"

"Finders keepers," she said, smiling.

"Quiverwing Quack? Phew. For a second, I thought you might be Darkwing Duck."

Gosalyn tried very hard not to scream in frustration. "He's not the only hero in town, ya know! And I happen to have stopped your plot, melon head." She held up the net, then gasped as she saw that the bottom of the net had been torn to shreds.

"Did you? I think a little girl got a bit overconfident," he said, laughing as he took the beaker from Spike. "Good boy, Spike. Now my friends, crush the twerp!"

Gosalyn heard Honker's warning just in time, leaping back as a tree branch slammed the ground where she'd been standing. She grabbed the buzz saw arrow from Honker and fired, slicing off the limb. The tree hopped around in pain, but more of the trees uprooted, stomping toward the two and closing in. "Hoo boy." Gosalyn said, looking around. They were boxed in and she couldn't take them all at once. She grabbed a fire arrow, igniting it as she nocked it, but she knew by the time she fired it, she wouldn't have time to shoot a second. So she moved it back and forth, trying to get each tree to back off. Just as the flame was about to burn out, gouts of fire sprung up around her and the trees backed up, holding up their branches to keep away from the flames. She glanced back at Honker. "Did you do that?" she whispered. Honker shook his head no, trying to keep his Arrow Kid helmet from falling off.

The fire died down, and the two teens from earlier swooped in. The dove was holding a giant brush and for a moment Gosalyn thought of Splatter Phoenix. She wondered if this brush had the same properties. However, it was the blade in the falcon's hand that Gosalyn focused on. The gleam from the firelight danced along the dark metal of the curved blade. "Keen gear..." she whispered.

The falcon sneered. "It takes a strong man to beat up on a little girl."

"Hey, she interrupted me! I was just trying to make my plant friends stronger!" Bushroot held up the beaker, causing both the newcomers to tense.

"No! Messing with the Heartless will only bring destruction!" the dove cried.

"You're trying to trick me. Arian said using the Heartless would be the best for them." And Bushroot popped the cork on the beaker, tossing the darkness onto the trees. The trees swelled, pulsing with a blackness that sent chills down Gosalyn's spine.

"Stay behind us," the falcon warned.

"Hey, I can help too!" She took another arrow.

"Alright, but watch your back," he said.

The dove raised the brush and fire swirled along the shaft. Gosalyn remembered what Bushroot said and cried out for her to stop, but whatever magic she was using fired, the flames slamming into the tree. It growled, then grew out several new branches. The falcon leapt and knocked the dove out of the way, catching a tree branch to the face for his trouble. "Riku!" the dove cried. Gosalyn fired her arrow as another branch descended, the buzz saw slicing it off, then had to jump over another as it rushed low. The dove raised her brush. "If I can't burn you out, how about I freeze you instead?"

Vines shot up from the ground, wrapping around the dove's arms before her spell could get off, pulling close against her body as more wrapped up her body. Stems wrapped around her head, covering her mouth so she couldn't call out. Smaller vines crept around her throat, tightening.

"Namine!" Riku cried, picking himself up and charging to try and free her. A root popped up, tripping him and he fell, the blade spilling out of his hand. Ivy burst from the ground, engulfing the falcon quickly before he could rise. Namine's face was turning blue as she struggled to breathe and Gosalyn knew it was up to her.

Gosalyn dug into her bag, going for her weed trimmer arrow. "Quiverwing, look out!" Honker cried. Gosalyn looked up just as the branch swung in. The pain was excruciating and suddenly she felt the sensation of flying through the air. She cracked her head against something hard as she landed and the world went dark.


End file.
